The Heart of the Bounty
A fanfiction
Chapter 18: A Fatal Mistake of Impulse
Tears are streaming down my face, and into my mouth. It tastes so bitter. My chest heaves as I fight my crushing sobs. I can't believe him. I just can't. I don't want to believe what I just saw, but he made no objecting response.
As I'm flying down toward Mars, my anguish consumes me. I know I'm flying recklessly, but it's the only way I can materialize my anger. And hopefully by letting it all out now, I can function properly when I find that damned Carver. The last thing we need on the Bebop is another failed bounty hunt.
Within minutes of taking off, I'm within reach of Mars' atmosphere. Foolishly, I don't slow down. I just need to get there; I need to get this job done. I need to prove myself. I need to get my mind off Spike. Of course, Spike dominates my thoughts. He's there in every turn I make, in every tear I cry. Goddamn you, Spike Spiegel.
I crash land into an empty lot at the outskirts of the city. Thankfully, the Capitol office is close by. I feel like I'm on a race against time; Lenny better not be there, fulfilling his twisted political message. Adrenaline pumps throughout my bloodstream, and I sprint over to the capitol.
If he's already made it there, the last thing I can do to contain the damage is to get everyone to leave. As soon as I walk up the steps, I realize he beat me to the punch. He's discussing the evacuation himself.
"We can be an indestructible race! There are evils beyond of unknown but magnificent power! You fools! How can you not support my genius? MY POWER?" Lenny yells, his voice coarse and booming. "How can you live with yourselves in this fear, and this apathy?" He paces around the lobby, with a ball of fire in his hand— the bomb. "You know how? YOU WON'T!"
Gunshots shatter the glass doors of the lobby. I fire a machine gun I snagged off the Bebop frantically, to get Carver's attention. Immediately, the wails and screams of people underscore the gunfire. People begin to leave, and alarms go off to signal evacuation. Good, at least I got one thing covered.
The bomb still in hand, Lenny turns to me, trembling with this sinister anger. I've ruined his plans, and he glares at me with this ruthless, vicious stare. He tosses his bomb behind him, and it doesn't go off. Goddamn. It's timed. I look for a few seconds upon the bomb, long enough for me to not notice him pull out his own gun.
He starts shooting at me, each shot piercing the air with a deep, sharp boom. These aren't normal bullets; they seem enlarged, and they're sharp at the point. His specialty. I avoid the first few shots, until one grazes my ankle.
"ARGH!" I yell, wincing in pain. I bend down, gripping the wound. I lose my balance; I start rolling down from where I was standing, at the top of the stairs for the entrance to the building. I land sharply on my side on the middle landing, assuming the fetal position as I continued to grab my ankle. "Goddammit it!"
"That's right, goddammit!" Lenny Carver retorts at me. He followed my fall, and now I'm staring at his boot. He kicks the side of my head, pushing it so I turn upward to face him. He bends down, his shadow stooping over me. The handle of his gun strokes my hair. "You're a bounty hunter, aren't you?"
"What's it to you?" I answer slowly and raspy, cringing in pain. I shut my eyes, unable to take the sight of him. Suddenly, I hear more gunshots, but they're distant. I turn my head to the side again and open my teary eyes; Jet and Spike are shooting toward him.
"And you have a posse? Goddammit!" Lenny yells. He kicks my back with enough force to push me down the last set of stairs. I land at Jet's feet, bruised and scraped, and still bleeding from Lenny's jagged bullets.
I suddenly feel his feet step away, and I don't know why. I keep my eyes shut, containing the tears of my pains as much as possible. Not only did my anger materialize, but also the hurt within me. I hear guns continue to fire to my side; they've taken the fight elsewhere. I wait a few seconds to see if it's really safe to try to get up. I muster the strength to prop myself up, while still gripping my bleeding wound. I've grown weak; the adrenaline has escaped me. With little energy, I finally stand upright, swaying a little from nausea. I turn to my left, toward where the boys are firing. Spike glances at me quickly a few times as he shoots at Lenny.
I then commence my last stupid mistake of the whole ordeal; I look toward Lenny. His face is scrunched up in anger, frustration, and aggression. He fires his gun as if it were his last hope for life; in a way, it is. He's already wounded several places, though insignificant. Spike and Jet are good shots. When the boys run out of ammunition, Lenny turns to me. His face was consumed in this devilish glare; he smiled sinisterly as he reached into his pocket. He lightly tosses something small, round, and orange into the air. I'm so weak I cannot even fathom what it is.
I look again toward Spike. I feel it; the end is coming. I'm going to end my life a failure, never accomplishing what I want, never truly having what I want. Looking upon Spike would be the topping of the cake; he encompasses all my losses now. But his expression is one of fear and shock. He's in the midst of reloading when he suddenly yells, "FAYE! LOOK OUT!"
And the next thing I know, I fall to the ground…
