Twenty Nine: Defiance

A/N: An alternate version of this scene from 'Flight 714'.

Next time, he decided, we are heading straight for the gate, and we are not talking to anyone.

Tintin marched forward towards the emergency exit, tightly clutching a howling Snowy in his arms. His eyes watered furiously from the smoke of the burst plane tyres, which was now floating throughout the cabin through the exit.

Although he tried to ignore the gun that Paolo was currently shoving in between his shoulder blades, he couldn't stop his body from shaking. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that all of us nearly died in a plane crash two minutes ago. Those pilots are complete idiots.

He'd sent up multiple prayers of gratitude as soon as he realised they hadn't perished, although it seemed that Snowy hadn't understood that message yet. The canine's wailing was beginning to ring in his ears, and obviously irritated their captors.

"Keep that animal quiet!" Paolo spoke abruptly, shifting the gun against Tintin's back.

"He's absolutely terrified, what the hell do you expect?!" Tintin snapped, refusing to look over at his captor. He desperately tried to soothe the squirming canine in his arms, yet Snowy continued to wail as they descended the stairs. "Snowy! Snowy, be quiet now!" You'll get yourself killed! Stop it!

A split second was all it took for things to go wrong.

Snowy managed to slip from his grasp, dropping to the ground and launching into a sprint. Tintin had never seen the canine run so fast, even when he was in danger. "SNOWY!"

"FIRE!" Paolo screamed at the Sondonesian guards, pointing towards Snowy. "Go on, shoot! Kill that dog! It's gone mad!"

Tintin barely heard himself sob as the guards fired their machine guns in Snowy's general direction, the bullets ricocheting off the boulders and mounds of sand. It was impossible to tell if the canine was alive or dead, for the bullets created a thick cloud from churning up the sand, but all of his remaining hopes were shattered by the large spray of gunfire. Oh, Snowy…my beautiful Snowy…

"Sudah selesai!" One of the Sondonesian guards yelled out as he refilled his magazine.

Tintin felt himself beginning to crumble.

Snowy…

Snowy is…

Tears fell uncontrollably from his eyes as he shrieked in grief. "SNOWY!"

"Tie him up already!" Paolo ordered, gesturing at Tintin with his handgun.

A trio of guards descended on Tintin, who thrashed desperately as he tried to escape their grasp. "MURDERERS! DEVILS!" His voice cracked as he screamed, his heart breaking inside his chest. He vaguely registered landing a punch to one guard's jaw, but his mind was too overwhelmed with despair to process it. "Snowy! Let me go!" You killed my best friend!

"You bungling fools! You'd miss an elephant at that distance! Go after that infernal mongrel, and make sure you wipe it out!"

Tintin stopped struggling, oblivious to the rope that was being fastened around his wrists. That voice…Why do I know that voice?!

His stomach dropped as he heard the same voice erupt into a deep chuckle, the man responsible for it stepping into his line of view. His vision turned red as he laid eyes on one of the most evil men he had ever encountered. "Rastapopoulos!"

"The one and only, my dear boy!" Rastapopoulos smiled around his cigar, the brim of his hat slightly obscuring his face. "Welcome to my island paradise!"

"RASTAPOPOULOS!" Tintin poured every last bit of venom and hatred into his words. Spit flew from his mouth as he expressed his rage, his face turning red from heat and anger. "Rastapopoulous, you complete and utter bastard! I swear to you, if you have killed my dog, I will haunt you until the end of your days!"

Rastapopoulos took a puff of his cigar, and started to laugh, wiping his eyes dramatically as he chuckled. "You are an absolute comedian, Mister Tintin! You are very funny indeed-"

"FUNNY?! YOU THINK KILLING MY BEST FRIEND IS FUNNY?!" Tintin decided to abandon his dignified persona and continue to shout, his throat already raw from the exertion. He shrugged away the restraining hands of the henchmen as he lunged forward at Rastapopoulos. "You are nothing but a selfish, cruel, heartless connard!"

If Rastapopoulos was surprised or insulted by Tintin's outburst, his demeanour did not betray it. "You should have minded your own business, and stayed on flight 714."

"We knew you were a swine!" Tintin growled. "But now we know you're a complete scumbag as well!"

Rastapopoulos inhaled sharply. He furiously marched over to Tintin and shoved the lit end of his cigar into the young man's cheek, eliciting a garbled scream from the reporter. "Insolent puppy! You dare to defy me?! When I have you in my power!"

The cigar was abruptly removed, causing Tintin to stumble as he gasped in relief. His eyes began to water a second time, and he willing allowed them to fall as Allan hoisted him to his feet.

My poor Snowy…

It was as though they'd been walking for hours.

In reality, it had only been fifteen minutes, though his body certainly didn't agree with that statement. Why couldn't we have landed somewhere less tropical? This humidity will be the death of me…

He fought to contain his frustration as he fiddled with the irritating knots that bound his wrists. The tropical sun was beating down harshly on his pale skin; he swore that he could almost feel his hair catching on fire. Sand had already gotten into the insides of his shoes, despite having only walked a few hundred metres from the plane.

As they marched through the sweltering heat, he kept his eyes focused on the path ahead. The section of his cheek that the cigar burnt ached terribly, and he longed to splash it with some cold water. He'd tried to keep himself occupied by directing a blindfolded Captain, though this had gone about as well as could be expected. "I said LEFT, Captain!"

Haddock screamed as he ran headfirst into the tree, shaking his head furiously in a vain attempt to dislodge the hat that had been pulled over his eyes. "Ten thousand thundering typhoons! Just you wait until I get my hands on you, Allan!"

Tintin had opened his mouth to tell his friend to be quiet when he saw it.

For a moment, he was convinced he'd hallucinated it.

But he quickly realised that it was a bit hard to hallucinate white fur in a luscious green jungle, and he allowed himself a private smile as Allan waved them onwards.

We will meet again, mon bien-amié Snowy. Rester caché…

A/N: Obviously Snowy survives - I could never kill him off.

Indonesian translation:

Sudah selesai = it is done

French translations:

Connard = dickhead

Mon bien-amié = my beloved

Rester caché = stay hidden