by Shadoe Masters
The chase heated up after that. The big, black GH knew it was being hunted and had no intention of getting caught. Its strategy was simple: stay in the crowds and keep moving.
Unfortunately for its hunters, it was a very effective strategy.
The three reached another event room, packed with people, as were most of them. He spotted the creature, dead ahead, as it threw back its head and howled. He couldn't hear it from this distance, but he had a clear shot. He lifted the dart gun and took careful aim.
Just as his finger began to tighten the trigger, Tyler pushed it up toward the ceiling. Burt glared at him.
"That's a person, Burt!"
Burt looked at the fur-covered thing. "How the hell can you tell?"
"Because the people are carrying plastic cups!"
Burt looked closer at it, and pursed his lips. Sure enough, it held a red plastic cup and took a drink from it while Burt watched. They'd been after the wrong creature. "We've got to herd this thing away from people."
Kylie followed them into the room and looked around. "I could do with a drink myself," she said, heading for the large punchbowl in the center of the room. She stopped abruptly and peered around Tyler, who'd begun following her. "You aren't going to shoot me, are you, Burt?" she asked, a twinkle in her eyes.
Burt shook his head. "Don't tempt me."
She reached out and took his arm, leading him toward the punch bowl. "A little liquid refreshment, a little food, you'll feel better."
"We've got a mission to complete," he reminded her, though he didn't fight her pull as much as he could have.
"Eat something now, kill something later," she told him. She filled cups for them both, handed him a couple of the sandwiches that were laid out nearby, then herded the men over toward the couches that lined the room. She smiled and a small barbarian hoard slid a little further down the couch so Burt and Tyler could sit down. Kylie gathered Burt's dart gun and stun rifle and leaned them against the wall, asked a nearby Stormtrooper to push an end table a little closer so the men could set down their drinks, and even provided napkins.
"It's like having a little mom," Tyler commented.
Kylie settled on the arm of the couch next to Burt and rested one foot on the cushion between them. Both men's eyes were drawn to the length of thigh on display by this position.
"Or... not mom exactly..." Tyler amended.
The three ate their meal, Tyler enjoying the view, not only of Kylie, but the parade of scantily clad ladies that caught his eye, Burt studiously not enjoying the view, Kylie or otherwise, and Kylie gathering a group of young men around to do her bidding. Burt glared at them impartially and they tried to ignore him in favor of jockeying for a position near Kylie.
After 15 minutes of Kylie's flirting, Burt had had enough. He stood, dislodging Kylie's foot and distracting Tyler from viewing the scenery. "We've got a mission to complete, you two," he reminded them, reaching across Kylie for the weaponry.
She smiled up at him, but didn't budge. "Geez, Burt, you can give it a half hour."
"We have a job to do," he insisted, reaching again for the guns.
Kylie shook her head but leaned back behind her to get them, affording Burt a close-up view of her barely-clad breasts. He stood abruptly and backed away, stumbling into a few of her admirers. He scowled down at Kylie just as she turned back. She looked at him, confused. "What? I got your guns." She held them out to him.
Burt snatched them from her and turned, almost hoping one of the surrounding men would refuse to give ground.
They didn't.
As the three left the room, a couple of men dressed and made up to resemble the two Quasimodo-like women Tyler had seen earlier entered. Their eyes locked on Kylie immediately, and followed her progress toward the door. Burt glanced toward her to see how she reacted. She smiled at them, enjoying the attention. Burt and Tyler shared a glance. The younger man thought it was amusing. Burt didn't. "Stop encouraging them," Burt grumbled to her.
She gave him her innocent look.
Burt's warning came too late. The men were more intent on Kylie than where they were going and walked headlong into the table holding the punchbowl. It wobbled and folded, sending punch, sandwiches and chips crashing to the floor.
Burt paused in the doorway to watch the damage, then turned to glare at Kylie.
"What?" she demanded.
Burt just shook his head and strode away.
"That wasn't my fault!"
Burt just kept walking, Tyler following in his wake, a grin on his face.
"How can you think that was my fault! I wasn't even near the table. Now come on..."
"Well you can't blame them," Tyler said.
"Who says I can't?" Burt grumbled, and lengthened his stride.
Burt scowled at the scanner again. "It says the thing's in here," he announced, reluctantly.
"Why's it like the dealer's room so much?" Tyler, beside him, asked.
"Probably all the people," Burt told him. "It's practically tunnel-like, with all the aisles, so he's right at home." He looked at Kylie, to his other side. "Try to keep the goggles on this time," he reminded her. "And watch yourself." He didn't think she'd be as lucky as she was last time she'd been attacked.
She smiled and winked, then stepped into the room, gun at the ready - and goggles pushed back to her forehead.
Burt pushed them down to her eyes.
"Ow!" Kylie cried, ducking out of his reach. "Burt! Watch the hair!" She took them off and arranged her hair under the goggles while Burt glared at her, but she kept them on afterward, and with that, Burt had to be satisfied.
They hadn't gone very far down the second aisle when Burt noticed a pair of young men in black t-shirts and jeans eying Kylie's legs. They didn't notice his warning scowl. Soon, though, Kylie became aware of their attention and shot Burt a glance. She shrugged in response to his glare and continued scanning the room for their quarry. Kylie skirted past the pair without giving them a sign she noticed their attention, but Burt glanced back and saw them following her progress. He sidestepped to block their view.
Then the three of them whirled, weapons at the ready, as an enormous crash came from behind.
It wasn't their creature.
Kylie's two admirers had apparently been paying more attention to her progress than their own and ran into a pair of magazine racks, sending them, and one of the young men, to the ground. Derisive laughter and applause rang out from the amused crowd.
Burt shot Kylie a look, one eyebrow raised significantly.
She pushed her goggles up to her forehead. "Don't you give me that 'I told you so' look, Burt. That wasn't my faul--"
With a howl, the black creature came through the crowd, pushing the convention-goers aside as it went. All three quickly took aim, but Kylie, on the left side of the wide aisle and nearest the creature, was the only one with a clear line of fire.
She fired, but missed. The creature spun and dove into the crowd. The shot went wild, grazing a rack of boxed action figures and toys, which toppled into the booth next to it, pulling down the drapery, and causing the ten foot wooden sign to fall into the easels of paintings in the next booth, leaving all three areas in total chaos.
She gave Burt a sheepish look. "Okay, that was my fault."
Burt shook his head while Tyler laughed over the disaster, but there wasn't time for a full accounting. They had to run after the creature.
They tracked the GH easily this time. The trail of startled people in the crowd was unmistakable. They followed him up the stairs and through the lobby, to the bank of elevators. The three rounded the corner just as the creature disappeared into one of the elevators.
"We've got him cornered now!" Burt shouted triumphantly.
But the doors closed as they approached.
Burt commandeered the elevator next to it by pushing people out of the way as it opened and people started spilling out. Kylie and Tyler followed him inside.
"Is he going up or down?" Tyler demanded from the control panel.
Burt watched through the glass. "Up!"
Tyler punched in a number. "Keep an eye on him! Can you see which numbers are lit up?"
Burt pressed himself against the glass, raising as high as he could, but he couldn't get a clear view.
"Gimme a knee, Burt!" Kylie insisted.
He bent one knee and Kylie quickly used it for a boost - something they'd done many times so Kylie could climb the rocky terrain around the valley. She stretched as high as she could, using the elevator rail for balance. "Seven!" she shouted.
Tyler punched in seven, just before the elevator reached the floor, and the box slid to a halt.
The creature's elevator had stopped just seconds before, and it dashed out of the elevator the moment the doors opened.
Then their doors slid aside, Burt, Kylie, and Tyler dashed out too.
The creature saw them and stopped dead, his eyes torn between the corridor ahead and the still-open elevator doors.
He chose the elevator.
Burt, Tyler and Kylie ran back to their own, Burt quickly boosting Kylie up to see.
"Which floor?" Tyler demanded, poised to press a button.
"He hit a bunch of them!" Kylie said, straining to make out the panel.
"What's the lowest one?" Burt prompted.
"Mmmm... 18!"
Tyler punched in the number and the elevator slid into motion.
As they followed, the creature screamed defiance at them, while Burt gritted his teeth in steely determination. "Oh if I could just get a shot..."
The GH's elevator came to a stop at last, the hunters' soon after. By the time their doors opened, the creature was halfway down the quiet corridor, and doors along the hall were already beginning to open. Burt paused and aimed the stun rifle, but it just didn't have the range. They were off and running.
It was fast, very fast. They'd never catch up to it at this rate. Kylie quickly took the lead, her daily run giving her the edge. But still the creature pulled away.
When it came to a balcony, however, it paused to scream at the people across the open lobby, sending echoes throughout interior of the hotel, and giving the pursuers a chance to catch up.
Burt paused not ten yards away and shouted. "Kylie! Get out of the way!" She threw herself against the wall and he fired the tranquilizer gun. The beast screamed, but didn't drop. Instead, he ran. Again at top speed, the creature pulled away, slammed into the exit door at the end of the corridor, and disappeared into the stairwell.
Burt and Tyler caught up with Kylie and the three paused at the stairwell door, readying their strategy should the beast be poised, waiting for them.
"I can't believe I missed," Burt muttered.
"You didn't," Kylie said.
He stared at her. "It didn't stop."
"I was right there Burt. You hit him square in the shoulder."
"You're sure?"
Kylie nodded.
He wanted to interrogate her further, but there was no time.
"He's heading down," Tyler said, listening at the door.
The three burst through the door and started clattering after him, periodically looking over the rail to track the thing's progress. They lost time because they were unwilling to leap the railings every third step, but thanks to Burt's long legs and Kylie's speed, they didn't lose it.
They left the stairwell at the 10th floor and sped down the corridor after it, until it hit the stairwell again at the opposite side of the hotel. Again they clattered down after it.
The 8th floor saw them gaining ground as the creature had to weave through people scattered like furniture throughout the hall. Kylie took the lead again, shouting, "Get out of the way! Move!" to clear a path for the men behind. They got very close midway down the hall, but Burt didn't dare take a shot through the crowds.
The thing burst out to a balcony then suddenly dived over the side.
Burt, Tyler and Kylie bent over the balcony and saw the beast running away on the balcony below.
Burt looked at Tyler, then Kylie and back to Tyler. "We could lower her down..."
"Are you crazy?" Kylie said. "That's eight stories!"
"Stairs," Tyler said.
They ran to the exit door at the end of the hall at a run and clattered down the stairs, Burt in the lead. He burst out of the stairwell at full speed, then came to a halt, weapon at the ready.
Tyler hit him, then Kylie ran into them both. Only his balanced stance kept them all from hitting the ground.
"Where'd he go?" Tyler said between gulps of air.
Burt shook his head, scanning the area. He cautiously started down the hall.
Suddenly, the creature burst from the nearest doorway. It started in their direction then froze when it saw them. It spun and ran in the opposite direction.
Burt ran after it, Kylie and Tyler close behind. It hit the door at the end of the hall, and disappeared into the stairwell again. They reached the door before it closed, and Burt saw it run down. As it ran full out down the hallway at the next floor, the three hunters were in pursuit. Once again they clattered down the stairs after it. Burt burst out of the stairwell at a run, but suddenly stopped. He spun, catching Kylie in one outstretched arm, Tyler in the other. "No! Run!" Over Burt's shoulder, they saw the creature coming toward them. Burt gathered them and they ran back into the stairwell and up.
It followed, barely pausing as it saw them, and went in the opposite direction.
"After it!" Burt shouted, and they changed directions and followed.
The creature left the stairwell two floors down. This level was crowded, filled with people sitting and standing along the walls, furniture that had been dragged out of rooms, and signs set up at some of the doors. It ran into one of the rooms, wreaking havoc, from the sounds that came from within.
The three reached the doorway and looked for the creature. "There!" shouted Tyler, and pointed toward a wide-open double door. There were more screams from the other side. The three ran after it, finding another door in this room exiting to the hall. They pursued. The people in the rooms cheered them on.
"They're all nuts!" Burt took the time to comment.
"This is Larry's crowd," Tyler explained.
"That explains it," Burt muttered.
The GH saw them gaining on it and poured on a burst of speed. They'd almost reached it when suddenly it stopped and turned toward them, with a shriek.
They skidded to a halt.
"What's it doing?" Kylie shouted.
"It's coming for us again!" Tyler replied.
They spun and ran.
They tried the doors along the corridor until one opened and they darted inside, closing and locking it behind, crouching with their ears against the door to listen for the creature.
"Man, I feel like Wakko, Yakko, and Dot," Tyler complained.
Burt shot him a puzzled frown before turning to Kylie for an explanation.
She shrugged and shook her head. "No idea."
As one, they turned back to Tyler.
"Animaniacs?" he prompted.
Burt just looked blank. Kylie blinked.
He shook his head. "Never mind."
"I think it's gone," Burt said, and cautiously opened the door. They set off again after the monster, tracking it by following the commotion it left in its wake.
"This is getting us nowhere," Burt muttered, during a rest break at two intersecting corridors. Then his eyes sharpened.
Kylie smiled at Tyler. "Burt's come up with A Plan."
Burt nodded. "Tyler, circle around to the other side of this balcony. Kylie and I will go around the other way. We'll herd it into a trap and shoot it."
"Sounds like a plan to me," Tyler said and headed off in the direction Burt gave him.
Burt lead Kylie in the opposite direction.