Author's note: What a ton to write, ha ha. I'd love to know what everyone thinks of this chapter, seeing as how it's currently my favorite. :D Hope you enjoy! And…it's such a pain in the butt trying to be descriptive. ;)
An eerie calm had settled under the water. A rush of bubbles led up to the surface, where the moon glowed brilliantly above, distorted by the waves. Razer struggled to free himself from the seat of the Javelin, watching in silence as Jyil clawed for the surface ahead of him. A dark streak of fuel floated around them in the water, flashing strange colors in the light. With a grimace, Razer pulled his leg from its place wedged between the seat and the side panel, pushing off the roll cage with his feet to launch himself toward the surface. His head broke free from the water and he gasped air back into his lungs, coughing slightly. He could hear Jyil sputtering somewhere off to his left, splashing rapidly. The water was strong against them and was pushing them further downstream, away from the viaduct and car wreckage. Razer allowed himself to be swept away, eyes hunting for a stretch of land he could climb on to. Jyil was still coughing as she came up to him, panting in short, shrill breaths. She latched on to his arm and he scowled.
"Can't you swim?" he grunted.
"Not very well," she retorted, turning to watch as large bubbles formed on the surface behind them.
Razer was still looking for a small ledge, feeling the river take them along. He spat the gritty water from his mouth, tearing Jyil's arm from his. She hardly seemed to notice, even when she bobbed beneath the waves for a brief moment before forcing herself upright again.
"You ruined my car! Do you have any idea how long it took me to get it? How much of my blood, sweat and tears I put into it?!"
Razer finally spotted a thin trail of land up ahead and smirked, shaking his head.
"Judging from your hysterics, I'd say quite a lot," he replied.
He pitched forward back into the water and began swimming for the shore up ahead. Jyil followed, splashing ridiculously as she went. Razer pulled himself back on to land, his boots making deep footprints in the mud. Jyil stumbled up behind him, panting. Before she could say anything he'd grabbed her wrist and yanked her toward him, all mischievousness gone from his expression.
"Chances are, the robot and that colleague of yours are still following us," he told her through gritted teeth, "So, if you want to keep your life for the time-being, I suggest you tell me whose side you're on."
His grip tightened threateningly and Jyil scowled, trying to tug from his grasp. Razer pulled her closer and small needles of pain shot up her arm. It felt like he was squeezing the bones together in her wrist.
"I need an answer," he said.
Jyil winced, flinching as droplets of water fell from his bangs on to her cheek. His other arm tensed and she was sure he was reaching for one of those deadly butterfly knives.
"If Rayn sent them," Jyil finally said, "it looks like I'm stuck with you."
He stared at her for a moment before letting her go. She wrapped her other hand around her wrist and massaged the pain away, glaring at him as he walked on. The wind felt impossibly cold coming off the river as they traveled along the thin shoreline. Jyil rubbed her arms in attempt to giver herself some warmth, long strands of hair sticking to her skin. Her clothes were dripping and clung tightly to her; she had to fight to keep her teeth from chattering. She was so caught up in watching her surroundings that she failed to notice Razer had stopped ahead, and nearly slammed into him.
"What now?" she asked irritably, irked at the fact they were standing still, leaving her to freeze.
Jyil tucked her arms close to her body and moved to stand beside him, realizing she only came up to his shoulder. She sniffed, wiping the beads of water from her cheeks as they gazed at the area they had come upon. The moonlight bathed the small valley-like region in an eerie glow, revealing the tall mounds of dirt that lay scattered before them. Digging machinery leaned heavily to the side, inactive until needed.
"We must be closet to the Dirt Stadium," Jyil remarked, back to rubbing her arms.
Razer narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. "You're right. If we follow the path it should lead us to it. Perhaps then we could find a place to rest, and sort out our agreement."
He cast Jyil a sideways glance before continuing forward, wiping his forehead roughly with the back of his hand. She hesitated a moment, but followed, finding it difficult not to stare at him. I'm cutting a deal with the man I was supposed to kill an hour ago- I've had better days. Jyil sighed, unable to stop the images in the folder from coming to mind; getting a glimpse into his life had proven interesting. For some reason, they had all stayed with her: him as a teen, with his friends and his first combat racer; with a woman at the race track, who had been identified as a relative; his first year as 'grand champion' at seventeen- the youngest to win in Kras City history.
Razer had retained his youthful appearance for the most part, from his thick dark hair to the black tattoos that snaked up the length of his upper arms. Jyil could tell the experience was all in his eyes, however.
"So tell me- did Krew have any reason to send you after me now, as opposed to sooner?"
His voice broke her from her thoughts and she blinked. He looked back at her over his shoulder expectantly.
"She didn't say," Jyil replied.
They had weaved through several of the dirt piles by then, crunching pebbles beneath their feet. Razer smirked, his eyes trained on the dark outline of the stadium in the distance.
"I find it interesting that she sent you, of all people, to do the job."
Jyil scowled. "Really? And what the hell makes you think you know anything about me to make that remark?"
Razer stopped walking and turned to face her, a smug smile tugging at his lips. Jyil crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows.
"You're full name is Jyillian, you're 28-years-old and the youngest of three girls. Your father used to be a mechanic for Blitz's father and you've wanted to race since the age of twelve. Most recently, you've won several pre-season races that make you Rayn's top pick for the season."
She gaped at him, horrified at the fact he could know such personal things. And he said them all as if from memory. Her cheeks flushed and her mouth moved up and down wordlessly. Razer gave her a mocking incredulous look.
"How's that for starters?"
Jyil finally found her voice. "And why do you know all of that?!"
"I watch too much television," Razer grinned.
He winked at her. Jyil felt a tremor of anger go through her and once again she wrestled with the idea of killing him right there and ending it all. But she couldn't, of course; people were after her -her own people- and Razer was keeping her alive for the moment.
How ironic.
They trudged up a dune of soft, crumbling dirt and she stumbled slightly, but kept her footing. Razer looked over at her just in case.
"I hated talking to those stupid reporters," Jyil muttered as she climbed.
"Don't we all?" Razer sighed.
Jyil shot him a look as they came to the top of the hill. A cold blast of air caused her to instantly forget her anger at him and she wrapped her arms around herself for warmth. She frowned as the wind snapped her hair out behind her.
"What are we-"
"-Sssh!"
Razer grasped her arm and she fell into silence. His hand was surprisingly warm against her skin. Jyil regarded him questioningly, watching his eyes dart back and forth as he listened for something. He finally sprang into action, his grip increasing on her arm as he pulled her the rest of the way down the dune.
"What the hell is-?!"
"We need to hide. It's coming this way."
Several barrels clattered to the ground in the distance and Jyil felt her heart shoot up to her throat, her stomach lurching so terribly it made her feel nauseous. She quickened her pace to match Razer's, throwing glances over her shoulder.
"Call it off," she hissed to him.
"What?"
Jyil stared hopelessly at him. "You control it, don't you? Call it off- tell it not to kill us!"
Several horrifying crashes echoed through the still air, followed by strange mechanical noises. Razer looked over his shoulder this time as they both broke into a run.
"I can't just tell him to stop," he said, "86 is fully sentient, meaning he can decide to do whatever the hell he wants."
"I don't believe you," Jyil returned angrily, "And don't call it 'he'! It's a robot- they can't think for themselves!"
Razer pursed his lips and yanked her along as they sprinted deeper into the dirt valley, leading her up to the collection of dormant machinery. Their shadows melted together as they crawled through the gaps between the cluster of scaffoldings leaned against the hillside. Stifling gasps for breath, the two racers fell into silence, crammed close together in their hiding spot. Jyil drew her knees up to her chest and waited, trying to calm her breathing. Razer gazed up through the grating above, splotches of light falling across his face. He frowned as Jyil struggled to remove something strapped to her back and her wet curtain of hair slapped against his arm. Razer reached over to grip her shoulder and she stopped flailing to look at him.
"Please," he whispered, "stop moving."
"But I need to get-"
His grip tightened and he leaned forward, staring into her eyes. She shrank back slightly.
"Don't."
Jyil could barely hear him, but nodded wordlessly. The peculiar robotic voice sounded once again and they both tensed, turning sharply to watch the dark lot through the criss-crossing support beams of their hiding place. Razer caught sight of twin yellow-orange lights glaring out against the darkness and unconsciously pushed himself further back into the dirt mound. He heard a small gasp beside him and Jyil mimicked his movements, her breathing increasing dramatically. The yellow lights bobbed closer threateningly; they could hear the distant stomps of the killer Death Bot as it advanced.
Razer was now aware of how fast his heart was beating; it threatened to leap out of his chest as the lights from the distant stadium illuminated the blood-red armor that covered the robot. His mind suddenly swirled with frenzied thoughts, both desperately and at random. He fought to control his breathing, firmly clamping his mouth shut. Jyil whimpered slightly beside him as UR-86 turned his head rapidly to hunt for them. She pressed her hands over her mouth to stifle any noise and trembled slightly.
"Sssh," Razer whispered, "We're alright."
The garbled robotic voice sounded strangely confused as 86 continued the search for them, stomping closer to the scaffoldings and abandoned digging machinery. Several things clicked and whirred as the former Krimzon Guard Death Bot spun its head sideways, scanning the surroundings and sputtering computerized nonsense as it went.
Razer and Jyil watched with bated breath as 86 stalked off to their left, heading up one of the dirt banks and was soon gone from sight. Jyil slowly let out a breath, leaning her head back. Razer sighed, pursing his lips. They stiffened once again as 86 sounded in the distance. There came an impossibly loud crash soon after; Jyil jumped and Razer winced after feeling her fingers fiercely squeeze his hand. A large collection of rusty barrels suddenly rolled down the hillside, thudding into one another and rattling as they tumbled over the uneven ground. One of them banged against the scaffolding, causing it to shimmy rapidly. The beams creaked threateningly and the shadows danced; a thin trail of dirt pattered on to Razer's shoulder. Jyil pressed her palm over her mouth once again, squeezing her eyes shut briefly.
There were no further sounds and the valley fell into a foreboding silence. Neither of them dared to move. After nearly a half hour in the unbearably tense stillness, Jyil leaned over to speak.
"Do you think it's gone?" she asked in a voice just above a whisper.
Razer's eyes swiveled to look over at her, the moonlight still slanting through the grating above.
"I don't know."
Jyil bit her lip and leaned against the dirt once again, her fingers clenched into tight fists. Razer swept his gaze across the seemingly vacant lot, tapping his knuckles thoughtfully on his knee. He leaned forward, falling into a crouch, feeling the dirt clinging to the backs of his arms.
Had he not moved, the scarlet armor-plated arm would have smashed through the grating and crushed his skull. Crying out, he fell on his side as the metal twisted and screeched over him. Jyil shrieked, scrambling to stand, trying to free herself from the tangle of bars. Razer scuttled back on his hands and feet, boots carving deep grooves in the dirt. The robot seemed to realize where they were going and wrenched itself from the ruined walkway, stomping after them. 86 jumped and fell from the ledge back to their level, a large cloud of dust billowing up into the sky. Lifeless eyes fixed on them and the thick black neck cords contracted, pulling the large head closer to his shoulders as the robot assassin readied for attack.
Jyil ran back through the criss-crossed bars, colliding with Razer. He swore as she hit him, watching in horror as 86 lunged for them. His eyes widened and he jumped, wrapping his fingers around one of the support beams beneath the tower. A deadly clawed hand snapped air beneath him, narrowly missing one of his legs. Jyil had imitated his actions and continued climbing up the ruined scaffolding, wriggling her way through the hole 86 had previously made. Razer climbed frantically, feeling his muscles burn from the effort.
The robot gurgled a string of incoherent computerized voices and clamped the tower in its powerful grip, yanking the beams loose with ease. The scaffolding groaned with a metallic whine and Razer braced himself as the ground came rushing to meet him. He let go of the bars and fell, rolling free of the tower. It crashed behind him with a strange twang. Jyil suddenly screamed and Razer turned sharply to follow the sound.
86 had gotten to her first, dragging her through the dirt by her ankle. She shrieked again, digging her fingers into the ground to try and stop herself, grimacing as every rock available jabbed at her stomach and chest. Before Razer could get to his feet, 86 was already upon him. He turned just enough to avoid getting grabbed by his hair or ear, but the deathly cold mechanical claw closed tightly around his bicep and yanked him from the ground. The world tilted briefly and Razer growled at the tight pressure on his arm. He could hear Jyil struggling to free her ankle as the robot turned to begin walking with them caught in each fist. Razer twisted in its grasp, his heels dragging along the ground, but 86 simply lifted him into the air and his legs kicked uselessly as they went. He shouted at the pain, feeling each claw digging into muscle. 86 appeared to hang on to them effortlessly, even with Jyil thrashing around as much as she was. Screaming, she tried to wrench herself free one again, cursing the Precursors hysterically as she flailed. The Death Bot lifted her from the ground so fast she nearly suffered whiplash.
In her upside down vision, her eyes locked with Razer's and he gazed at her grimly. Jyil clenched her teeth and writhed furiously, her free leg kicking the air rapidly. Her fingers strained to reach for the weapon still strapped to her back. Razer understood what she was doing and struggled violently as well in attempt to catch the robot's attention. His arm was beginning to go numb and jolts of pain struck him with every movement.
"Double-crossing heap of scrap metal," Razer spat, "I should have known better!"
UR-86 slanted his glowing eyes and turned his head to look at the ex-racer. Jyil still thrashed violently about, trying desperately to reach the stock of her weapon. The blood had rushed to her head and she felt dizzy.
"Of course Rayn would use you," Razer hissed, "We always turn to you as a last resort."
86 growled threateningly. Several gears, springs and locks clicked rapidly before the arm twisted and slammed Razer against a dune of dirt, clamping a three-pronged claw against his neck. He coughed, hands prying at the cold steel.
Jyil gasped and sobbed slightly, her leg now tingling with pain. She cried out, stretching one final time behind her shoulder to reach for the gun. Her fingers finally curled around the stock and she wrenched it free from the holster on her back, struggling to adjust to the weight. She grasped it fiercely in both hands, swinging back and forth in the grip of UR-86. Razer coughed again, only mere seconds' worth of air left in his lungs. His boots sliced long tracks in the soil as a last attempt at freeing himself. 86 made a noise that sounded terrifyingly like laughter.
Jyil sucked in a breath, cocking the gun, bracing it tight against her shoulder. She summoned every ounce of strength left in her body and pulled herself upright, screaming from the action. She latched her arm round the robot's shoulder and jammed the wide barrel of the gun as far as it would go into the exposed space between the head and shoulders. Jyil turned away and pulled the trigger.
The weapon boomed, a small concussion wave flaring dark red as it went. A hole was blown straight through the back of the Death Bot; sparks burst into sight and one of the thick black neck cords snapped, causing its head to loll to the side. Jyil fell from its grasp, as did Razer, who painfully gasped air back into his lungs, coughing violently. 86's voice came out in a flourish of distorted, high-pitched sounds that made Jyil's hair stand on end. She struggled to her feet to watch as the robot assassin staggered forward, doing its best to try and attack them once more.
Jyil titled her head, smirking slightly.
She raised her weapon and fired again, the force sending her back a few steps. A large wave of scarlet slammed into 86, causing the one of the eyes to flicker and fade away. With a strange groan, the robot fell to the ground with a thud, still struggling to right itself. Jyil ran up to it, planting her foot on its head, reaching to pull out the sensitive wires now poking out from the damaged interior. Razer shook his head.
"Get away from there!" he rasped.
But Jyil wouldn't have it. She grabbed a fistful of wires and shrieked, yanking them out of place. The heavy metal limbs twitched and shuddered; she tugged harder, causing sparks to fly as the circuits fizzled and more wires were torn from their sockets. UR-86 gave one final cry of protest before slumping to the mud in a heap, twitching in the last moments of "life."
Razer walked cautiously up beside Jyil, massaging the fresh bruises on his neck. She still held a tangle of wires in her hand and threw them down in disgust, her breath coming in ragged intervals, shoulders rising and falling rapidly. Together, they stared down at the destroyed Death Bot in a shared moment of awed silence. Razer was the first to break it.
"What the hell is that?" he croaked.
Jyil tore her gaze from 86 to glance at the weapon still clenched in her hand. Her face broke into a smile, a bright white shining out against the grime.
"It's called a Blunderbuss," she said, "Feel the weight."
She dropped it into his palms and knelt down to continue jerking wires and chunks of material out of the robot, moving to sever the other neck cable. Razer turned over the gun in his hands, amazed at the design. It was a jet black in color and looked more like a pistol, though he had to hold it in both palms. A large eco chip glowed brightly from the handgrip, slightly illuminating his face.
"I've never seen something like this," he mused, "The rounds have to be the same strength as that of a shotgun…"
"Ever cut a deal with Eco pirates?" Jyil asked as she worked, sweat dripping from her chin.
"…Can't say that I have."
She laughed, turning to look up at him through flyaway hair.
"I guess you've never wanted to race as much as I do."
*******
It was nearly a quarter to midnight when Rayn was interrupted from her paperwork by Bowie, who practically came crashing through her lavishly decorated hallways to report the details of his mission. She looked up at him curiously, noticing his haggard appearance, complete with his dark hair in disarray and smudges of dirt on his clothes. Rayn arched an eyebrow.
"I take it she didn't go down too easily."
The stocky, muscle-bound man paused to catch his breath, one hand on his chest. Rayn sighed, rolling her eyes. She put aside the papers and leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs. Giving her henchman a moment to recuperate, she searched in the drawer for Jyil's file, prepared to stamp the lovely bright red letters of 'Deceased' over the pictures and documents. Razer's was had yet to return, and it was one of the things Bowie was to give her. Rayn let out another sigh as she flipped through the old pictures of her latest assassin with family and friends. She shook her head.
"Tsk, it's quite a shame. I rather liked Jyil- she was smart, capable, funny; an all 'round sweetheart. And what a great racer, I may add…I was actually hoping we would be friends much longer than this."
She looked up at Bowie and frowned, aware that he was still gulping air. He held up his hand, as if he was almost ready to speak.
"For God's sake," Rayn exclaimed, "Are you alright or should I call in a doctor?"
"No…no, I'm alright…"
"They both must have really given you a run for your money. I would've sent more people had I known-"
Bowie emptied a small drawstring bag on to her desk and the contents clattered on to the polished surface. Rayn's eyes widened and she gasped sharply. Her heels clacked against the floor as she jumped to her feet.
"Just what the hell is the meaning of this?!" she demanded.
Rayn stared down in disbelief, pointing her finger angrily. The head of UR-86 was now a temporary paper weight on her desk.
"If this is some kind of sick joke-!"
"It's not," Bowie interrupted, "I went to go meet up with 86 to see if he'd finished the job, and…that was all I could bring back."
"You were supposed to go with him! To make sure things like that don't happen!"
Rayn jabbed the air frantically over the robot's disembodied head, her voice shrill with incredulity and a hint of fear. Bowie squirmed under her intense gaze.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Krew, but…I figured a KG Death Bot didn't need any backup."
Rayn groaned, throwing up her hands. She fell heavily back into her chair and shook her head, massaging her temples with her fingers. Bowie watched on, nervously wringing his hands.
"This was supposed to be a 'two birds with one stone' deal," Rayn snapped, "And now I'm back where I started, and that smarmy blighter has yet another ally!!"
She groaned again, balling up her fists and slamming them on the armrest of her chair. After staring at her feet for a moment, she straightened back up, visibly calming herself. With closed eyes she said,
"Alright. So it's happened." Her eyes snapped back open and she glared at Bowie, who flinched. "But next time I ask you to do something, it will be done! If anything like this happens again, you're gone, do you understand?!"
"Yes, Ma'am."
Rayn growled, wrinkling her nose at the robot's head lying on her desk.
"Get that thing out of my sight."
Bowie snapped to attention and did as he was told, hastily grabbing what was left of UR-86 and leaving the room. The door slammed behind him and Rayn slouched in her chair. She grasped Jyil's file and hurled it across the room, cursing loudly as the papers fluttered to the carpet like strange leaves.