It didn't take long for Rhade and his deputies to reach Victor's spot in the market. The market area was as empty as the streets had been. Not even the enyets that normally wandered the market looking for scraps were in sight. As they approached the potential battleground Rhade brought their pace down to a slow walk. Not only would it be psychologically advantageous as it gave the appearance he felt confident about his ability to handle the situation, it gave him a bit more time to assess the opposition. He also wanted the Tans looking in his direction and not in the direction from which he had instructed Juarez and the others to approach.
As Cho Hee had said, there were roughly two dozen Tans. They were also tightly bunched together. The walkways in the market were narrow enough to prevent more than four people from walking abreast. All but one of the Tans were carrying rifles and wearing shock wands on their equipment belts. The one outlier was wearing a holstered pistol. Rhade surmised that this was Burma.
Victor—Rhade had no idea if Victor was his first name or last name, but everyone called him Mr. Victor—was one of the company's tenant farmers who sold his surplus food in the market area. Jeri was one of his regular customers. Rhade had conversed with him a time or two while acting as Jeri's pack mule when she was on a shopping expedition. At present he was being held by one of the Black and Tans and looked positively terrified.
Victor's establishment was typical of the farm stands that dotted the market area, consisting of nothing more than several rows of tables bearing baskets filled with the surplus produce of his farm. In front of each basket was a hand-lettered sign proclaiming the price of the basket's contents. There was a scale on one table and near it a partitioned wooden box that was used as a cash holder.
As Rhade brought his force up to join Cho Hee and the others, he moved them all up until they were practically nose to nose with the Tans. This was a tactical decision on his part based on the weapons each side possessed. Rhade's men and women were equipped with pistols and force lances. The force lances had been modified by Andromeda so they functioned strictly as mêlée weapons, but they still retained their shock wand capabilities. And, in the close confines of the market where Rhade and his deputies normally worked, mêlée weapons and pistols were actually more useful than rifles.
"Well, if it isn't the sheriff of south-side," said Burma when Rhade came to a halt. "Here to watch us take care of this deadbeat?"
"Actually," said Rhade, "I'm here to prevent you from making a fool of yourself by breaking company regulations."
Rhade's answer took Burma by surprise. "What do you mean keep me from making a fool of myself?"
"Just that," answered Rhade, attempting to sound as if he was discussing the weather rather than preparing for a street brawl. "Company regulations are quite clear that upon issuance of a delinquency notice, a vendor has three days to either pay up or remove his wares from the marketplace. As you have just now informed Mr. Victor that he is in arrears of his payment, he has three days to pay up before you can take action against him. It would be embarrassing if I had to prevent you from violating your own regulations."
"Please, sir," begged Victor, tears running down his face. Rhade couldn't tell if they were from fear or from pain from the arm lock the Tan had him in. "Give me the three days. I'll have the money. I promise you. I'll be ruined if you destroy my shop."
"You should have thought of that before you forgot to pay for your vendor's license," said Burma. "Go ahead," he said to his men. "We'll make an example of this scumbag. Show the rest of this south-side garbage what happens when they don't keep up with their payments."
As the first Tan approached the tables, Rhade extended his force lance and laid it across the thug's path, blocking his access. "No," said Rhade. "You heard the man. He said he'd have the money."
The Tans stopped and looked toward Burma, awaiting his orders.
"You just made a serious mistake, sheriff," said Burma while moving to the back of his squad. "Take him out, Dulot," he said to the man Rhade had stopped.
It's never a good idea for an unmodified human to engage in close quarters combat with a Nietzschean. It's an even worse idea when the Nietzschean in question is holding an extended force lance and is expecting said human's attack. As the Tan swung the stock of his rifle toward Rhade's head, Rhade shifted his grip on his force lance and brought the staff up horizontally under the approaching rifle. The rifle was deflected over Rhade's head, and the Tan's body was completely exposed. Rhade followed up his block with a kick to the Tan's midsection, sending the thug staggering backwards into the rest of the Tans. Shifting his grip again, Rhade swung his force lance like a club, staggering another Tan, then followed up the strike by thrusting the staff like a spear.
By this time, Rhade's deputies and the Black and Tans were engaged in a general mêlée. With the two sides so closely engaged, Rhade's forces had the advantage. The Tans couldn't bring their rifles to bear as projectile weapons and were forced to use them as unwieldy clubs. Rhade's deputies' force lances on the other hand were admirably suited to such close range work and had the added advantage of being shock wands as well. Only one of the Tans was able to bring his rifle to bear.
Rhade heard the crack of the rifle and out of the corner of his eye saw Cho Hee stagger backwards. Acting on instinct rather than thought, Rhade changed his force lance from shock wand mode to effector mode. The transition was quick, but not quick enough to prevent the Tan from getting off another shot—which completely missed its target. Rhade aimed for the center of the Tan's chest, but just as he was firing, the company thug pivoted to take aim at another one of Rhade's deputies, bringing his arm across his chest as he did so. Both weapons fired almost simultaneously. The Tan's round clipped Dennic's ear while Rhade's round struck the Tan in the hand, causing him to drop his weapon.
And then it was over.
Rhade's reserve element had entered the fray and taken the already engaged Tans completely by surprise. All of the Black and Tans were on the ground either unconscious or moaning in pain.
Rhade rushed over to Cho Hee fearing the worst. To his astonishment, she appeared uninjured. There was a hole in her shirt but no blood. She was also swearing creatively. She smiled when she saw Rhade coming towards her. "I guess my good luck charm helped me out again," she said. She reached down and pulled the medallion from beneath her shirt. There was a bullet-sized dent in it.
Rhade extended a hand to Cho Hee, helping her to her feet. As she got up she grunted in pain. "Dennic," called out Rhade. "Take Cho Hee down to the Oasis and have Doyle look at her. She may have a cracked sternum. And, get your ear taken care of while you're at it. You're dribbling blood on your shirt."
"What about me?" whined the man Rhade had shot. "I need medical attention, too."
"I'd say you won't be using that hand to shoot anyone for quite a while," answered Rhade. "You're lucky you're still alive. I was aiming for your chest."
"Yeah, but what are we going to do with them now?" asked Juarez, waving his force lance at the Black and Tans, who were now wearing their own wrist and leg restraints.
Rhade walked up to a dazed Burma, who was being held upright between two of Rhade's deputies, and raised his force lance. Then very slowly he lowered the weapon. If he killed Burma the residents of south-side would probably start dancing in the streets, and if it had been just him and Burma, the Tan would be dead already. Unfortunately, they weren't alone. Summarily executing Burma would set a bad example for his deputies. He didn't want them running around feeling they had a license to kill anyone they thought needed killing. Sooner or later they would make a mistake and kill someone who should have lived.
Rhade placed the business end of his force lance under Burma's chin and lifted the company enforcer's head up so he could look him in the eye. "I'm feeling generous today," he said. "We're not going to kill you. We're going to confiscate your weapons, then march you through town to north gate. When you get to your headquarters in north-side, you can take a message to your superiors. Tell them the Tans no longer have any business in south-side."