Kids N' Vigs
Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2003 3:03 pm
Redline and I will be posting the rest of our joint story, Kids N' Vigs in this thread. Feel free to post comments in between chapters, but keep in mind that if they get off topic they will be deleted.
For those of you that missed it on the old TBR, or simply want to review what had already been posted, here it is:
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August 12th, 1986
With one hand leaning against the glass door of a refrigerator, Redline Fox pushed his face against the other one in front of him. Its surface frosted over from the temperature difference of its cool sealed air and the luke-warm air that wheezed out of the general store?s air conditioner. Eyeing the object of his desire on the other side of the glass, Redline opened the door quickly. He then moved as much of his body as he could possibly get inside while letting the door prop itself up against his back. He let out an exaggerated sigh as he took in a deep breath of the cold air. For a few short moments he imagined himself in his own little personal cave of coolness.
?Redline what the hell are you doing to my beverage selection!?? Dante, the store?s owner yelled.
Not willing to give up his temporary slice of heaven just yet, Redline Fox simply ignored his berating. It could only be temporary, after all he did have appointments to keep, and he didn?t have the money to pay for repairing the fridge if he managed to break it. Reluctantly, he took a small carton of milk in hand while shutting the door. As he made his way to the counter he snatched a few packs of various cookies from the racks.
Dante leaned against the counter as Redline Fox placed the items in front of him. He raised his eyebrow at the sweet selections.
?Pack of Cigarettes too.? Redline said plainly.
Dante took in a perplexed breath,
?Cookies and smokes, whatever you want Redline...? he said as he searched under the counter for the usual.
A rather stuck up looking man in a shabby suit standing next to the counter gave Redline Fox a long look as he was taking a pack of matches from the free box. Redline knew he was being stared at but ignored the man.
The suit piped up,
?You know smoking is bad for you,? he said rather obnoxiously.
Dante stopped in the middle of standing up. The suit obviously expected a reply.
?Stress is also bad for you, now get the hell away from me.? Redline Fox said in an annoyed tone.
The suit couldn?t take a hint.
?Hey, if you want to kill yourself that?s just fine with me, but why don?t you take a look at some of these photos I got here...?
The Suit presented a briefcase while he babbled on.
Dante was getting as irritated as Redline Fox but wasn?t sure what to do about the situation. He rang up Redline?s items as the Suit fumbled through his briefcase. Redline paid for his food, then quickly smacked the suit with the back of his hand. Not too hard, but just enough to get his attention. The suit immediately stopped talking.
?You are causing me unneeded stress, please get away from me before I have to throw your body in the trunk of my Piranha.?
Redline emphasized his car hoping the fool would get the point. Apparently the suit wasn?t as thick headed as the two other men though, without a word he packed up his briefcase, tipped his hat and ran almost full tilt to the parking lot.
?What a prick, a real shame though that a vigilante seems to scare some people so much, especially when we are sometimes their only line of defense.?
Redline smirked,
?Well, some of us are just so ugly I?m not surprised.?
Dante folded his arms across his chest.
?Ha, remember he ran away from your ugly mug not mine.? Dante said.
Redline Fox laughed to himself a little. ?Touch?.?
Dante leaned back on the counter as Redline Fox lit a cigarette, taking a conservative puff.
?So, you hear about Ride as of late, seems he is doing real well for himself...settling down with a family and all.? Dante said half in passing.
A tinge of past regret flashed across Redline?s thoughts. Redline Fox responded slowly, ?Well, that?s fine for some people I guess...I don?t really like kids that much, not the kind of responsibility I want.?
?You?ll probably change your mind someday man, you?re still a young guy.?
Redline Fox sighed, ?Already too old though, I think, besides the world is too messed up, I don?t want to raise any kids in a world like this.?
?Yeah...maybe...time will tell.?
?Yeah...?
Redline said as he moved towards the door, ?Take it easy Dante.?
Dante decided to start cleaning up the floor, and as he took mop and bucket in hand he yelled to Redline.
?I?m not even supposed to be here today, damn DP hasn?t...up to work...week.?
The last few bits where not audible as Redline Fox walked out into the baking afternoon sun. He puffed on the cigarette a few more times while making his way to his blood red Picard Piranha. He usually wouldn?t leave the windows down, but it was so hot he just didn?t care. With not much thought he dropped the paper bag containing the still chilled milk along with his cookies into the driver?s seat. He had found a beach towel with a fox face sewn on in the previous town?s flea market; and it was now employed to keep the hot black leather seat from burning his ass every time he sat down in it.
With smooth motions he put the almost done cigarette in his mouth and slid into the driver?s seat. A quick glance into the passenger?s seat caused him enough of a start to motivate him back out of the car. He opened the driver?s side door, stood up, then sat back down while looking into the passenger?s seat. Sitting there with seat-belt on was a small child, who from what he could tell was not more then four or five years old. Redline Fox stared back with the same bewildered blank expression that the small child held in her blue-green eyes. Her hair was a light, brown color, and there was a note in her hands, hands that where a little more dirty then would be desirable even for a little kid. Redline took the note out of her hands very gingerly, the child?s expression did not change as he looked her over while unfolding the note. It read ?in one hand I hold a gun?? Redline noticed that there was a small arrow at the bottom directing him to flip it over. He wasn?t sure if this was some kind of game or what as he read the rest. ??In the other, someone to protect.? It was half understanding, half confusion on his part. Was it because he was a vigilante, did this child?s parents think he could protect her? Redline was not very sure of what to do. The child?s eyes where on the paper bag; he looked down at the bag as well.
?Uhh...hey, you want something to eat?? Redline asked calmly.
The child?s expression didn?t change but she shook her head in a ?yes? motion.
?Ok, uh...well...I got some milk here.?
He took out the carton and shook it,
?And cookies, I guess it?s not the best meal but...uh...?
Redline Fox opened the cartoon of milk and put the paper bag down on the child?s lap, then the cookie bag on top of that.
?Uh...try not to get crumbs in the...car...? Redline realized he was still smoking his cigarette. Quickly he snatched it out of his mouth, singing his finger.
?You shouldn?t smoke, smoke is bad for you...OK...Ugh...wait right here OK? Redline said quickly, still trying to stay calm.
Kicking her feet slowly up and down, she drank some of the milk. She gave a slight smile as she bit into one of the cookies.
?Err...don?t go anywhere OK kid...??, Redline said as he got out of the car.
She nodded at him. Redline Fox had a hundred thoughts racing through his head as well as an ever increasing sense of anxiety in his chest.
***********Chapter 2*************
?I?ll be damned Redline.? Dante said as he read the note.
Dante leaned against the Piranha and poked his head into the window.
?Hey there sweety, where?s your parents at huh?? Dante attempted to coax a reply.
Not showing any signs of talking, she simply sat with her hands folded looking out of the car at him.
Redline Fox, ?This is crazy, who would just leave their kid in a weapon laden car.?
?It?s a messed up world remember.? Dante said flatly.
Conceding to him that point, Redline put his hands over his face and rubbed his eyes.
Off in the distance a rumbling drone was approaching the general store. It was immediately apparent of to what the sound was for Dante, his special customers.
Dante spoke sternly, ?You better get going, here take these.?
He handed Redline an overnight bag. It was filled with children?s clothing.
?Problem?? Redline Fox asked.
Dante shook his head, ?Maybe, depends if the biker?s are tanked up already or not. If not I?ll just give him a few cases of beer and they will love me for the rest of the month. Be surprised how useful people like that can be if they are loyal. Not a place for your new friend though.?
Obviously Dante was right, at least something was clear at the moment.
?Alright Dante, be careful...? Redline said.
Dante smirked, ?I know how to handle them, everything will be fine. You?re the one that needs to take extra care, now get going.?
Both vigs shook hands firmly; a way of saying that they had each other?s back, Redline Fox quickly threw the bag into the backseat, climbed into his car, and backed out of the parking lot. He pointed the car in the opposite direction of the biker?s then took off down the road. The Piranha?s speedometer steadily raised, the powerful car increasing in speed as it barreled down the empty highway. Every now and then he would dare a glance at the kid who had come from nowhere, and was seemingly now his responsibility?At least until he could find a decent orphanage.
?So uh?What?s your name?? he stammered, obviously a bit unnerved by having a child just dropped into his life. The child looked up at Redline from her seat on the passenger side, big blue-green eyes shimmering in the midday sun. Glancing over again Fox asked,
?Well? Do you have a name??
She just sat there, staring at him, head cocked to one side. ?Oh well, so much for idle conversation? he thought. He flipped on the radio and they both sat silently listening to the news reporter on the radio. More reports on economic depression, and the gas crisis. Pavement moved endlessly underneath the car, and Redline was able to forget about the kid for awhile. Suddenly the radio died, and Redline turned his head to see the kid had just flipped the switch.
?Don?t like the radio, huh kid??
She shook her head once and just went back to looking at him.
?Err? Something you want kid?? asked Redline.
The girl nodded her head once and looked down at the floor. Still not quite understanding Redline continued
?Well? what is it??
He thought he heard her mutter something? but Fox couldn?t quite make it out. ?What was that??
Looking up again at Redline she replied, a bit louder this time
?Potty.?
Redline was a bit stunned by this at first and didn?t know quite what to say, so he just kept on driving for a moment.
?Ugh? Like now?? said Redline, the kid just nodded her head.
Shaking his head Redline pushed down on the accelerator. There was a gas stop and restaurant coming up soon anyway. The car could use some gas, and he could use some food? and she could use the bathroom.
?Can you hold it for a couple of minutes? We will be at a bathroom soon.? He told her.
Redline glanced over and noticed that the child had already crossed her legs, and they seemed to be shaking.
?Oh no you don?t.? he said to himself, as his foot pressed down on the gas again. The Piranha picked up speed again; he was pushing 70mph in a 55 zone on bingo fuel. Redline kept glancing over at the kid, worried that she might ?burst? at any moment, and that would not be good for his car. She started to squirm more and more. Just when he thought she was going to explode, the Wagon Wheel and Gas 4 Cash came into sight. The Piranha ripped into the parking lot and pulled up as close to the bathrooms as possible.
Redline hopped out and ran around to the passenger side, opening the door and helping the child out. She hurried towards the bathroom doors in an odd limp-like jog, all the while holding her lower belly. Redline quickly walked over to her and nodded towards the bathroom.
?I?ll wait here, don?t worry.?
The child looked up at him and shook her head. She reached out and grabbed his hand.
?Oh?Oooh, no uh, sorry kid...? Redline said, taking a step back.
Stomping her feet, she tried to pull Redline towards the bathroom.
?Look, I?m not gonna do it ok? I?m sorry.?
She let go of her hands and put her hands to her face. Redline was about to speak, when she looked back up at him, tears in her eyes.
?I don?t wanna get left behind again.? Lips trembling, tears started to roll down her cheeks.
Jaw dropped, Redline just stared back at the crying child.
?Oh? no kid, I wasn?t going to leave, I promise.?
She stopped crying and looked at him for a moment, before reaching for his hand again. Redline took her tiny hand, in his what seemed to be giant hand now, and led her towards the bathroom. He pushed open the door to the ?Men's? bathroom and started to go forward, but he turned around to see that the girl had stopped.
She looked at the bathroom and shook her head.
?This one.? She told him as she headed for the ladies washroom.
Redline?s face changed to an expression of horror.
?Whoa, not so fast there?I can?t go in there. We can use the men?s bathroom, don?t worry.?
Once again her lip started trembling, and she tugged on his hand. Before he knew it Redline was halfway in the door to the ladies? restroom. With his head through the doorway, he called out,
?Uhh? Is anyone in here? I err? have a child?who needs to use the bathroom, and she won?t use the?uh?men?s washroom. So I'm uh, coming in.?
Redline slowly walked in, with the child incessantly tugging on his hand for him to hurry up. She went into the first stall, and Redline let out a sigh of relief. The bathroom was empty. Minute by painstaking minute ticked by, and Fox just stood there for what seemed like an eternity. Just to pass the time he had washed his hands five times. Just as he was about to go back for a sixth washing a distinct click-clack of high heels could be heard on the tiles of the bathroom floor. Redline's Heart leaped up into his throat as he whirled around, red faced, to find a now startled, plump, middle age woman staring at him. Fox was at a loss for words and just stood there blushing furiously. The woman, picking up quite obviously on his embarrassment, broke the awkward silence, "Pardon me, sir.. but am I in the wrong bathroom?"
Quietly Fox managed to say "Uh no... I?m here with uh well my... little girl... She didn't want to go into the men's washroom you see..."
A smile slowly spread across the woman?s face until she was grinning like an idiot. "Well isn't that just darling. What's her name?"
Before even thinking about it "Jade" rolled off of Redline's tongue.
"What a beautiful name." The flushing of a toilet cut the lady short.
'Jade' Emerged from the stall and looked up at the woman, staring and saying nothing.
The lady looked down at Jade and then gave a distasteful look towards Redline. She took her by the hand and washed her up in the sink Redline quickly thanked the lady and made a hasty retreat. Redline let out a sigh and walked towards the door.
Once they were outside, Redline could feel his stomach grumbling. She had eaten all his cookies, and drank his milk. ?Well kid? I?m about as hungry as it gets, so I?m going to get some supper. You coming?? She nodded her head and they headed towards the diner.
************Chapter 3*************
Several miles away, black fuzzy dice swayed from the rearview mirror of a jet-black van, .50 slugs rolled around on the dashboard. Hands gloved in fingerless leathers gripped the custom chrome chain steering wheel. A cigarette held in the fingers wafted a thin smoke. Raised to parched lips it gave one more long drag, then was jammed into an ashtray, extinguishing any spark of life that had remained. Reflective aviators glinted in the sun, flanked on both sides by long, locks of curly hair that flowed down past tanned shoulders. Three necklaces: a silver cross, a skull with crossed guitars beneath it and a length of steel chain held together by a small padlock, all of them hanging against the background of a tight sleeveless shirt adorned with a chaotic pattern of skulls n? cross bones. From the ends of the shirt protruded strong arms, not so bulky as they were toned. All the way down the left arm was a large, intricate tattoo of a rattlesnake that ended on the hand with the head of the rattler, mouth open and fangs beared. On the right shoulder, an ornate cross with skulls on the ends and in the center, below that, just above the elbow, a top-hatted skull wreathed in barbwire with two revolvers crossed behind it. From the elbow to the wrist, another intricate tattoo of a snake; a cobra, the coils of it?s body on the wrist with it?s hooded head extended up to the elbow, this one also appeared to be in a striking position. Around the waist, a belt with rows of shiny, pyramid-like spikes worn loosely around some black leather riding pants that culminated in a pair of high, leather boots with straps around the ankle. By no matter of irony, the man to whom all of this belonged, was named Snake.
Snake?s black Phaedra Street Van sped down the two-lane blacktop. It was a custom job; equipped with black racing-style rims, chrome-edged fender flares, a spade-shaped dome window built into each side, tinted windows, a custom chrome grille, ground effects, extra-wide tires in the back and Snake?s favorite addition, the regular shift knob had been replaced with a chrome skull whose eyes flashed red every time the van changed gears. Snake?s watch told him that it was almost seven o?clock and he was hungry.
Several miles down the road was a restaurant, The Wagon Wheel. A place where someone could relax, eat something and forget the stresses of auto-vigilantism. Not the best restaurant around, but it held sentimental value to many vigilantes, most of whom had saved it from destruction by creeper raids at one point or another. The buildings appeared in the distance, merely specks, but were expanding rapidly.
When Snake pulled into the lot, there was only one armed car he could see immediately, a blood red Piranha. He didn?t realize it at first, but then it clicked. The car belonged to Redline Fox; a well-known vigilante in the area and a close friend of Snake?s. He grabbed his keys from the ignition, and stepped out of his van. Near the service entrance of the restaurant he noticed two identical Clydesdales, and both were heavily armed. But with the demand for tighter and tighter security these days, he assumed that a private security firm owned them. The door chimed as he walked in, his bootstraps ?clinking? with each step, and he scanned the booths probing for Redline?s face. He spotted it in a booth near a window.
Merely looking over the menu made Redline?s stomach growl fiercely. The waitress came over and he ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with fries, and an extra fatty grease filled hamburger. The waitress gave him a little wink and turned towards the girl.
?What do you want, pumpkin??
She pointed to something on her menu, and the waitress nodded her head and walked away. Redline looked across the table at her and thought for a moment. ?So??, as he began to speak another voice cut in.
?Hey Red??
Snake stopped dead in mid-sentence, surprised beyond belief at what, or more correctly who, was sitting next to Redline in the booth. A little brown-haired girl who Snake figured couldn?t have been more then six years old.
At the sound of Snake?s voice, Redline turned to see who had attempted to address him. Upon recognition of his old friend, Redline quickly got to his feet, grabbed Snake?s limp hand and gave it a firm shake.
?So where?ve you been, man??
Snake?s reply was mumbled and distracted.
?Oh?uh, I went back to?umm?Hollywood for a few months to?ah?catch up with some people??
Redline couldn?t help but notice Snake?s eyes were solidly transfixed on his new friend.
?Hey Snake, let?s take a walk, okay??
?Uhhh?ya, right?walk.?
Redline turned back to his charge, who was listening attentively to the whole dialogue.
?Stay here while I go talk to my friend, okay??
She smiled and nodded at him, then proceeded to grab a crayon and started working the maze on her place mat. Redline put an arm on Snake?s shoulder and led the stunned man out the front door. Once outside, Snake very rapidly became lucid again.
?Holy shit, man! You had a kid?!?
?Uh, not really??
?Whaddaya mean, ?not really?! This is as fuckin? black an? white as they come! Either she?s yours or she isn?t!
?She?s not my kid.?
?Fuck, man! Yours or not, you know what you do for a livin?, this is no place for some??
Redline slapped Snake with an open hand. He didn?t think he?d hit him that hard, but a resounding smack proved otherwise.
?Ow! What the fuck??
Redline interjected before Snake got really carried away. ?Snake, shut up and listen! I found her in my car earlier today, someone dumped her there with this note.?
Redline produced the note the child had been holding. Snake read the note; the perplexed look on his face clearly stated his confusion.
?Well, what the fuck does that mean??
?It means that someone thought that since I?m a vigilante I could protect from someone or something. But I?ll be damned if I know what.?
?Man, that?s fucked up. She got any parents or anythin? like that??
?Got no clue, she?s hardly said a damn thing since I found her. Don?t even know her name. Well sorta anyway... She calls herself Jade now.?
?Well from what I saw, she obviously understands English, and you say she can talk, so let?s see if we can coax it out of her.?
?Worth a shot, I guess.?
The duo went back inside. The waitress had delivered the meals and the girl was digging into a plate of chicken wings. Snake squatted down at the end of the booth and Redline took his seat opposite her. Snake quite apparently intimidated the girl and understandably so, she shied away from him, sliding towards the window. Snake was not discouraged by this and tired to strike up a conversation.
?Hey there, my friend was wonderin? what your name is. If ya don?t want to tell him, that?s just fine. Would ya like to tell me your name??
The girl shook her head side-to-side defiantly and frowned. Redline sighed and mumbled something inaudible under his breath. Snake spoke to Redline.
?Hey, relax man, I got an idea.?
?OK?say, how about we swap names. I?ll tell you mine and you tell me yours, that sound good to you??
She stared at him for a moment, contemplating the idea. Finally, she nodded in concurrence.
?Alright, I?ll go first, my name?s Snake.?
As Snake spoke he pointed out his rattlesnake tattoo. She giggled at the sight of it.
?Now it?s your turn, what?s your name??
She looked at Snake and Redline with an uneasy glance, then in a timid, little voice, she produced the name.
?Jade??
?Well, it?s very nice to meet you, Jade.?
With that Snake sat down in the booth next to her. By now, Redline had wolfed down almost all of his meal.
"Now what, man??
Redline?s reply was obscured by great globs of half-chewed beef and bun.
?As?er?bout?he?paren??
?What??
Redline swallowed and repeated.
?Ask her about her parents.?
Snake turned back to Jade, who was now enthralled with the various tattoos on his arm.
?Jade, do ya know where your parents are??
She shook her head and continued to stare at the intricate designs on Snake?s arm.
?Hmmm, I?ll tell ya what, Jade. You can look at my tattoos all ya want if ya tell us where your parents are.?
She struggled with what she was trying to say.
?Umm?daddy got hurt, but mommy said he?ll be OK?Then mommy said we have to go away?uhh?she gave me a note to hold and said to wait in the red car. Mommy said she would come and get me in a few days??
She trailed off. Then looked straight up at Snake, he was amazed by her big, blue-green eyes. They were really rather beautiful and he found himself looking deeper and deeper into them. She spoke again.
?Daddy had a friend named Cobra... They used to go driving around at night time... But Mommy never let me go with him... ?
Snake shot a quick look at Redline, that was important and they both knew it. Snake looked at Jade hoping to get something else out of her, but her eyes had started to wander about. Suddenly she cringed and let out a small whimper, she grabbed his shirt and pulled herself right next to him. He thought it was a rather bold thing to do until he saw the expression of terror on her face.
***********Chapter 4***************
?What is it? What?s wrong??
She pointed towards the bar, Snake immediately noticed a man dressed in tan slacks, a long-sleeved button-up shirt and tie, who was staring right at them. As soon as Snake made eye contact with him, the man turned away. The waitress walked by again and put the bill on the table, Redline picked it up and grumbled something about it being too expensive, but forked over the cash. Snake very subtlety pulled out his .50 Magnum and checked how many bullets were in the clip; it was full. The pistol was a large, silver-plated semi-automatic. The .50 caliber round it used was capable of shooting through a 2-inch steel door and still maintain enough velocity to go clean through someone?s torso. Snake knew this from a personal experience at his home in West Hollywood. He didn?t want to have a gunfight in the restaurant, too many normals around, but if this guy took a shot at them he wanted to be ready to take him down. Redline noticed Snake checking his rounds.
?Hey, man, what?s up??
Snake nodded towards the bar.
?The dude at the bar in the tie, he?s been starin? at us, Jade in particular.
?Hmmm, maybe we better get ought to get out of here.?
?Right.?
Redline pulled out his 9mm Beretta and checked the ammo under the table, then turned to Jade.
?Are you done, Jade??
She nodded.
?Uh-huh.?
?Well, it?s time to go, we?re going to find a place to stay tonight.?
Both men put their pistols in their belts and covered them with their shirts. Both of them knew that waving a gun around in a public place is not a great idea at even the worst of times. Snake got out of the booth, Jade followed suit, then took hold of Redline?s outstretched hand. The man at the bar didn?t pay much attention as the three of them walked out the front door. They were almost to their cars when Redline saw the man running towards them, with a large smile on his face.
?Howdy there, Stranger!? said the man loudly as he approached them.
The man stood in front of Redline, with Snake to his left. Redline nudged Jade behind himself and spoke to the respectable-looking man. ?Who are you?? Redline inquired.
?Name?s Jake. I see you found my girl,?
A look of terrible sadness swept across the man?s face.
?She was kidnapped four days ago, and I?ve been looking for her ever since. I?m so glad you found her, words cannot express the joy in my heart. I would do anything to pay you back. I was offering a reward of $50,000 to the person that found her, it?s yours if you want it.?
A sigh of relief escaped Redline?s lips, he relaxed a little. However, Snake remained suspicious, Jade was still hiding behind Redline. ?If he really was her father she would have run up to him with open arms?, thought Snake. Redline now spoke to the man in a much friendlier tone.
?I?m so glad I found her parents, it?s not safe out here for a child. Here, just let me get her stuff would ya? Where are you parked??
The man responded joyfully,
?Great, I can take her from here. We are just parked over there.?
Jake gestured with a nod of the head.
Redline already had his head inside the car and didn?t care to look, fumbling about in the back for the bag of clothes Dante had given him for her to wear. Snake looked in the direction that Jake had nodded. Three men stood in the shadow of the restaurant, beside the heavily armed Clydesdales. Redline spoke from inside the car,
?Well, alright then?just a second I know I have a bag of her stuff in the back??
Snake made a decision; he grabbed his gun by the barrel and pistol-whipped Jake in the side of the head, and Jake went down hard. Redline pulled his head out of the car and his pistol was already blazing, shots fired towards the men in the dark. When his clip was empty Redline grabbed Jade from the ground where she had crumpled into a little ball quivering in fear, and gently tossed her into the passenger side of his Piranha. Fox jumped across the hood, as a hail of bullets crashed about him, shattering the passenger side window. He quickly dove into the driver seat, flipped the ignition, and the engine exploded to life.
Snake was still returning fire, his Magnum booming thunderously with each shot. One man took a round in the chest; blood and flesh flew from the exit wound as he fell to the ground.
The shattered passenger window was in hundreds of tiny particles that had showered over Jade as she wrapped her arms around her head. Redline shouted to her, ?Jade! Stay down!?
Redline sat up straight to return fire, a bullet cracked off the roof, missing his head by a distance that he didn?t care speculate, so close he could feel its heat as it ripped through the air past him. He ducked down close to the wheel.. More bullets struck the passenger door and whistled through the windshield, leaving large holes in glass surrounded by spidery cracks. This was too dangerous; they were putting Jade at risk. Snake was now on the other side of his van, firing across the hood. Redline shouted over to him.
?Snake, we gotta get out of here, Jade?s gonna get hurt!?
?Right, man, let?s roll!!?
Snake jumped behind the wheel and slammed shut the door of his van in a fluid motion that only experience could perfect, his engines roared to life in unison. Snake?s tires spun and squealed, then grabbed the asphalt, vaulting the van over the concrete parking stop; he fishtailed across the adjoining lot of the Gas 4 Cash and onto the highway. Redline peeled out in reverse, halfway across the parking lot he pulled the hand brake and jerked the wheel hard. The Piranha responded by spinning about back to front, then with lightning fast reflexes, Redline shifted into first and pushed the accelerator to the floor. The tires screamed against the massive flow of torque as they thrusted forward. Bullets ricocheted off the bodywork with an incessant ?ting? sound. Redline pulled the wheel to the right until it locked up, pinning himself and Jade against the side of the car as it swung out of the lot, tires still smoking as Redline burned the rubber off them. Another bullet shattered the rear window. He straightened out the wheel and gunned the Piranha down the highway after Snake?s van. Fleeing was not something he was used to. However, he couldn?t risk a fight while Jade was with him. If anything were to happen to her he wouldn?t be able to forgive himself. Looking down he saw that she was sobbing quietly in her seat.
?Its OK now, Jade?He?s gone, you won?t have to worry about him anymore.?
*******Chapter 5********
Those blue-green eyes looked back at him, now wet with tears. Some sort of paternal instinct kicked in and he reached over, wiping a tear off her cheek, while trying to pay attention to the road.
?It?s getting pretty late now, we should find a place to spend the night. Could you get the map out from the glove department??
Quiet as usual, Jade complied and went digging through the mess Redline had left in there until she found the map he wanted. Redline grabbed the CB microphone.
?Breaker, breaker, this is Redline Fox, come in Hollywood.?
Snake responded.
?Roger, Redline Fox, this is Hollywood, come back.?
?Where?re we gonna go, man? Over.?
?I was thinkin? about the safe house off I-79, we?re 20 miles out now, could be there in 10-15 if we hustle. Over.?
?Alright, sounds like a plan. Redline Fox, over and out.?
Redline hung up the microphone and looked over at Jade. She was staring at him with an expression of questioning.
?It?s gonna be alright now, we?re going to a safe house, no can get at you there.?
?What about my mommy??
?Don?t worry, we?re going to find your Mom, I promise.?
Redline was not one to throw around promises, but when he made one he kept it, no matter what.
Fourteen minutes later, Redline pulled into a small parking lot, flanked on three sides by reasonably large buildings with garage doors. The ten-foot iron gate slammed shut behind them, locking into place. The sign on the gate had fallen victim to the test of time and was no longer legible. It had once read ?U-Truck Storage Lockers?. Ten-foot iron fences, topped with razor wire surrounded the whole compound. Security cameras sat on the corners of the buildings, a green utility van sat in the lot beside one of the buildings, a small dish on top of it rotated consistently, sending out its radar signal while thick cables running out of the van channeled the information inside. Redline honked his horn, several seconds later one of the garage doors opened. Florescent light flooded from the doorway, illuminating the small lot. Redline pulled in, put the ?Ranha in park and killed the engine. As he got out, a familiar and very welcome face appeared in front of him. None other than Owen, they had been friends since the start of the auto-felon crime wave. There was not a soul on the planet that Redline trusted more than Owen. Redline stuck out a hand, Owen grabbed it and pulled him into a hug. He felt like crying, there was no one who would make him happier to see. Once Owen released his hug, he stood back and spoke.
?It?s been too long, man. Snake filled me in. Where is she??
?In the passenger seat, fast asleep, must be dirt tired.?
?Let?s get her into a bed.?
Owen walked around to the other side of the car and opened the door. Jade was curled up, sleeping soundly. He picked her up ever so gently; she seemed like a newborn child compared to Owen, standing 6? 5?. He carried her into the main room, with Redline in tow. Snake was seated at table with the CB and radar equipment in front of him. He got to his feet as they walked in.
?How is she??
?She?s fine, just tired, that?s all.?
?Good, I haven?t had a single blip except for you since I got in, we must?ve lost ?em. I made up a bed for her, it?s in the back room.?
?Great, thanks man.?
?I?ll cover watch until 3:00am, then Owen, you take over for me until dawn.?
?You got it, Snake.?
Owen carried Jade into the back room and laid her down on the foldout cot Snake had setup. Redline put a sheet over her and a pillow under her head. Owen plugged in a nightlight near the bed. Then switched off the lights as they both left the room; Redline closed the door behind him. In a soft voice he spoke to the other two men.
?That?s one tough kid.?
?Ya, she is,? replied Snake.
?What are we going to do with her?? Snake shook his head wearily.
?I don?t know, man, I just don?t know?but you two ought to get some sleep, we?ll figure it out tomorrow.?
?Alright man.?
?I?ll wake you up at 3:00, there?s Coke in the ?fridge if you?ll need it.?
?Ok, thanks.?
Redline and Owen both retired to their quarters, leaving Snake with a radar screen, a pack of cigarettes and half a bottle of Jack Daniel?s. It was unusually cold for an August night in the desert. A native of California, Snake couldn?t stand cold, and after much rummaging about he finally found a blanket; it wasn?t much but at least it made the night watch bearable. The radar screen spinning, his watch hand spinning, radar bleeping, watch ticking. Bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep?He couldn?t take it anymore, his watch read 1:47.
?Another fuckin? hour and 13 minutes of this shit,? Snake thought aloud.
It took all his strength and willpower not to fall asleep in the remainder of his shift. Two trucks doing graveyard runs had sped past, but that was it. He wasn?t used to so much nothingness; maybe it had to do with the fact they were in the middle of nowhere. None of them even knew the exact location of the safe house, just one of those things that gets passed on. They were somewhere in Arizona, close to the Nevada border. Snake didn?t know how long he had been up, but a quick check of his watch told him it was 3:04. Wrought with sleep deprivation he shuffled into Owen?s room. Snake leaned over Owen and gave him a shake, hardly after Snake touched the sleeping man there was a flurry of motion and before he knew it there was a .45 being shoved against his forehead. Owen relaxed the gun once he realized who it was.
?Jesus Christ, Snake. You ever heard of just telling someone to get up?? Snake?s reply was muffled and almost incoherent.
?Sorry, man. You?re on shift?? He trailed off, practically falling asleep in mid-sentence.
Owen spoke softly as he helped Snake into the bed.
?Thanks, man. Sleep well.?
The only response was Snake?s deep, nasal snoring.
Owen grabbed a dark blue bowling shirt he had thrown on the floor, noticed that his patch was coming off the shoulder. He had sewn a Canadian flag patch to the shoulders of some of his clothes, just a matter of pride he told anyone who asked . He walked out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him. He took his seat in front of the radar equipment, now what was he going to do until the others woke up? An idea struck him and took several quarters from his pocket then grabbed a plastic cup.
********Chapter 6**********
As the tedium of watching an empty road and the repetitive clicking of the quarters on the table started to wear away at his senses, his mind began to wander. He couldn?t help but think about how much things had changed in the past few years. In fact, the events in Las Vegas just over two years ago are what changed everything.
It was the last time so many creepers had been organized into a single army. Since that time, they had all scattered to their own territories and gangs, and the time they didn?t spend making small raids into Vigilante-controlled areas, they spent warring with each other. There were several different leaders that each thought themselves to be the rightful successor to The Wraith, but none had managed to do anything more than piss the other leaders off.
But the change that really intrigued Owen, was how much his close friend Redline Fox had changed. A mere three years ago, he was a loner that avoided associating with anyone aside from his sometime partner The Professional, and on rare occasions, Owen. He always fought the good fight, but many other vigilantes questioned his true motives. All but Owen, that is. Owen was one of the few that not only counted Redline as an ally, but as a friend too. The times they worked together were few and far between, but something had always connected them, almost as if they were brothers.
And now, after all that time spent as a loner, here was Redline actively seeking out help from allies, and on top of that, he was caring for a small child. Both things that seemed completely out of character for him, that is, at least until Vegas.
Everything could be traced back to Vegas.
After DIRM had been taken to the hospital, the rest of the group, CADman, Ace English, Shamus, Azz, Fnork, and Owen had gone out in small groups to survey the battle scenes and look for any survivors. The remains of The Professional?s Clydesdale and Redline?s Piranha had been found almost immediately, and both drivers were laid to rest a few days later. It wasn?t until just after the funeral that Owen was told that Redline?s coffin had been empty; his body had never been found. From that moment on, Owen had made it his all-consuming goal to find out what happened to Redline. He took on that quest with such fanaticism that almost everyone thought he had slipped into a state of madness. Truth be told, he wasn?t far off. When he wasn?t out searching hospitals, city morgues, and every nook and cranny his friend could possibly be, he was in his garage, painstakingly rebuilding the red Piranha from the ground up. Any time someone would question him why he was wasting so much time on the twisted wreckage, his answer was the same, ?Redline will want his car when he comes back.?
He restored that car to almost mint condition, but went out of his way to preserve the few battle scars that Redline himself had refused to fix as a matter of pride. Redline had a story for every one of those scratches, dents, and holes, and Owen had memorized every single one of them.
In what was a remarkable coincidence, the very day he put the finishing touches on the paintjob of the rebuilt Piranha, he stopped in to a small hospital in southern Nevada that he never even knew existed. In fact, he would have missed it completely if he hadn?t stopped by a small frontage road to watch the sunset and reflect on his life. He was in the middle of contemplating whether or not he should give up his seemingly hopeless quest, when he spotted a very old and almost unrecognizable ambulance turn onto a small side road up ahead in the distance. He almost didn?t follow it because he?d all but decided to give up, but at the last minute changed his mind and went to investigate anyway. Looking back, he was glad that he did. The small hospital it lead him to, if it could even be called that, was little more than a storage facility for John Doe coma patients that had been given little to no hope of ever waking up. Owen was absolutely shocked when he saw the battered, but still recognizable face of Redline Fox staring blankly up at the ceiling in one of the old beds. One of the orderlies told Owen that he had been found by a passing tourist inside a wrecked car, in the middle of a grisly battle scene. They?d thought he was dead from the bullet wound to his torso until they discovered that he was still breathing, but just barely. He was taken to a hospital in Reno and stabilized, but since no identification was found on him he was classified as a John Doe and moved into the coma ward. After a few weeks without waking or having anyone show up to identify him, he was moved to this small facility.
With Owen?s help, Redline was moved to a larger medical center a few miles from his current hideout. Owen visited him on a daily basis, but even then it took another two months before he finally regained consciousness. What finally brought him out was remarkable in and of itself. Owen had started driving the Piranha when he went to visit, and had made a habit of parking outside Redline?s window and revving the mighty V-8 engine to see if the sound might bring his friend back. Redline?s condition changed almost immediately, and less than a week later he was fully conscious, and almost ready to check out.
After learning all that Owen had done for him, Redline vowed to never again abandon his friends and allies like he had done so many times in the past. He owed a debt to Owen that he might never be able to repay, yet, somehow, that didn?t bother him one bit.
Owen, still staring out onto the darkened highway, smiled to himself. Sometimes it took that kind of dedication to bring someone back from the dead. And sometimes, the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. Redline?s demeanor quickly returned to how it had been before the incident, but even so, most of the apathy that had dominated his personality was gone. He still preferred to work alone, but was no longer appalled at the idea of calling for backup if he needed it. And he showed a great deal more sympathy towards ?normals? now too. Back then, he never would have taken in a child that needed help, but here he was, with a little girl named Jade?
He didn?t know how long his mind had been wandering, but sunlight was now starting to pour over the horizon. Against the orange background something was casting a large, black shadow that was reaching up close to the sparse cloud cover. He fumbled around the equipment table, Snake was such a pig, couldn?t he just try to keep this place clean. He found the object he desired under a half-empty bag of chips. Binoculars. He raised them to the horizon and focused in on the tall shadow. It was a column of thick, black smoke. He couldn?t range it to anything, but the sheer height of the plume led him to conclude that it had to be one hell of a big fire. He didn?t want to leave the safe house, but he had to check it out.
Snake opened his eyes slowly, everything was blurred, and as it came into focus he saw Owen standing over him.
?Uhh, what time is it??
?It?s quarter after six.?
?What!! I?ve got four more hours of sleep comin?. Fuck off!?
?Come on, man, there?s a fire out there, I need you to cover for me so I can check it out.?
?No fuckin? way!?
?I?ll buy you two packs of cigs and a sixxer of Budweiser.?
?Make it three packs and imported beer.?
?Deal.?
?Alright, go check out your stupid, fuckin? fire, I?ll cover for ya.?
?Thanks man!?
Owen ran out to the garage as Snake struggled to get to his feet. The windows were down in his trademark pink Pan Am, so he grabbed the A pillar and slide in, landing in the driver?s seat with the kind of precision only practice could provide. He turned the keys in the ignition and basked in the throaty rumble as the engine came to life. He revved several times then took off, tooting the horn as he passed the window; he could vaguely see Snake flipping him the bird as he sped away.
With the speedometer reading 100mph, it seemed like he?d only left the safe house for a few seconds when he crested a hill and spotted the source of the fire. It was a Gas Palace, flames raging from the pumps and the station, reaching upwards at least 30 feet.
He skidded to a stop on the road in front of the inferno. As he got out of the car he was assaulted by the immense heat, as a backdraft blew out the front doors of the station forcing him to shield his face from scorching air. Over the roar of the flames he heard a familiar sound, the sound of his radar detecting a target. Owen ducked into his car, one enemy target closing fast. Suddenly the radar began beeping wildly as several more dots appeared on the screen.
?Oh shit!!?
He jumped back into his car and peeled away in the opposite direction of the advancing force. He looked back out of the rear windshield, through the heat haze he could make out 6 little dots and their respective dust trails, but there could be more of them in those trails.
*************Chapter 7**************
A fiery hot tracer streaked past the driver?s side window, and was followed by a series of dull thuds as live ammunition hammered into the back of the pink Pan-Am. Owen glanced at his rearview mirror and counted three creepers drifting in and out of view, each firing madly at him. From the sounds of projectiles hitting the aft armor plates, he estimated there were at least three more chasing him that he couldn?t see.
Owen hit the switch to activate the oil dropper and held it for a full two seconds. At nearly 90 mph he left a patch of oil over 250 feet long, bit it did little more than cause his pursuers to skid slightly and lose a little ground. He cursed when he saw that not only were the lead cars still within firing range, but now the low oil pressure light for his dropper was blinking too, meaning it was almost empty.
He fumbled for his radio and yelled into it for help. ?Mayday! Mayday! This is Owen, requesting immediate assistance east of the Gas Palace! I am under attack by a large pack of creepers and can?t hold out much longer! Mayday! Mayday!? He received only static as a reply. Either the creepers were jamming him somehow, or he was out of range of anyone that could possibly help. It was more likely the latter since he was heading farther and farther out into the desert, but at this point it no longer mattered. ?Shit?, he muttered to himself.
He swore again when he realized he was nearing the edge of a massive bluff overlooking a barren valley. He was rapidly running out of room, and there was no choice but to stand and fight. He was outnumbered at least 6 to 1 and knew it was a hopeless fight before it began. To no one in particular he said, ?Well, let?s see how many of these bastards I can take with me??
He yanked the emergency brake and spun the car sideways, smoothly dropping the transmission into reverse at precisely the right moment. He?d performed the maneuver countless times before so it was almost second nature to him, but this time the usual split-second over-revving of the engine was accompanied by a harsh grinding sound as the transmission slowly began to destroy itself. It still held for the moment so he focused entirely on the pack of creepers. As the nose of his car came about, he counted eight hostile cars, not the six he originally thought.
Owen immediately opened fire on the nearest car and tore apart the engine compartment with his bumper mounted machine guns. The rest of the creepers swerved out of his line of fire and began to circle back. A loud beeping echoed through the driver compartment telling Owen that a missile was being locked on. He flipped a switch for his magma karpoon so it would activate the instant it was fired rather than on impact, and gave a wicked grin. The beeping became a continuous tone, and a smoke trail streaked away from one of the attackers. He pressed the launch button for the karpoon and sent it at the nearest car. The missile immediately changed direction to chase the new target, and followed it right into the side of a beat-up brown Royale, which exploded into a ball of fire. He sent another magma karpoon out into the fray, and a second missile followed it into the front end of a Cavera. Five left.
He wasn?t escaping unscathed, but was fortunate that most of the creepers were using small caliber machine guns. Even so, there was now a steady plume of white smoke pouring out of his hood, and the engine was starting to miss. It was the most disheartening sound a vigilante could ever hear. His car was dying.
?Come on baby, hold together just a little longer?? Owen whispered to his car.
Another creeper, clearly inexperienced with combat, took a hit to his right front tire, spun out of control, and went careening off the edge of the bluff. Owen sent his final remaining magma karpoon at the bright orange Manta that was firing all the missiles. It missed to the side by mere inches, but by a stroke of luck the Manta loosed a missile at the same instant. The missile violently changed direction to follow the karpoon and slammed into the ground right next to the Manta. The resulting explosion sent the car cart-wheeling away in a ball of flame.
There were only three creepers left, but Owen had run out of luck. His transmission was now completely destroyed and the engine was giving little more than a weak cough. He had managed to get the car into neutral before the transmission went out entirely so he still had a little momentum to use before he was finished. The creepers saw his slowing as well, so they started to hang back rather than risk getting killed by a crippled car.
Owen grabbed his radio and called out to the creepers on the common channel ?What?s the matter? Are you guys afraid of something?? They didn?t respond, but didn?t fire back either. ?If that?s how it?s gonna be?? He turned his car towards the edge of the bluff, and used his final remaining moments to taunt them some more. ?I?m not going to give you bastards the satisfaction of killing me!? He leaned back in his seat and let go of the wheel. It was only a matter of seconds before he went sailing off the edge of the cliff and into oblivion.
Incredibly, one of the creepers rocketed up next to Owen with a shot of nitrous and rammed the front quarter panel of the pink car to prevent it from going over the edge. The pink Pan-Am ground to a halt about ten feet from the cliff, while the remaining three creepers came to a stop with their noses all pointed directly at Owen?s now dead car.
He sighed to himself, since he finally understood the purpose of the ambush.
They didn?t want to kill him. They wanted him alive.
**********Chapter 8***********
One of the creepers had stepped out of his car and was approaching on foot. He was carrying what looked an awful lot like an AK-47. In a last desperate attempt at salvation, Owen picked up his radio and gave one last call out on the emergency channel. ?Hello? Is anyone out there? I could really use some assistance out here? aww, screw it.? He knew that even if someone could hear him, they?d never be able to reach him in time.
Much to his surprise, he actually got a reply this time. ?Reading you loud and clear Owen, help is on the way.?
Owen was speechless for a second, since was wasn?t expecting anything but static. ?It?s about time someone answered? not like it matters now.? He realized that he didn?t recognize the voice, yet there was something familiar about it. ? Who the hell is this anyway??
?This is your guardian angel. ETA two minutes. Can you hold out until then??
Owen quickly scanned the brightening horizon to look for any sign of the promised help. To the North, West, and South there was nothing. No approaching cars, no tell-tale dust cloud, nothing. To the East was the several hundred foot cliff and the blinding light of a steadily rising sun. Even if he could see anything in that direction, it didn?t matter. There was no way anyone down there could help him now. He replied back into the radio. ?Umm, okay. Thanks for nothing??
He let the radio drop to the floor just as the creeper stepped up to his door with the muzzle of the gun pointed at his face.
?Out of the car, NOW!?
Owen thought of making a stand with his trusty pistol, but even if he could take out the guy holding the machine gun, he wouldn?t stand a chance on foot against the two fully armed cars. He paused, trying to take as much time as possible without making it look intentional, then slowly opened the door and stepped out with his hands in the air.
?Okay, what the hell do you want with me??
?We want the girl. Where is she??
?As you can clearly see, she isn?t here with me, you fuckin??? his reply was cut short when the butt of the AK-47 smashed into his stomach, dropping him to his knees.
?Where is the girl!? I?m not going to ask again!?
?I?m not going to tell you a damn thing, so might as well just shoot me.? Owen gasped, still holding his stomach.
?All in good time, Mr. Owen, all in good time. I can?t kill you yet, at least not until we decide you?ve outlived your usefulness.? The creeper grabbed Owen?s shoulder, dragged him to his feet, and motioned towards a dirty silver Sovereign. The driver of the car hit a button and the trunk opened.
Owen dropped to the ground, pretending to be more injured than he really was. He looked around and still saw no sign of any help. Whoever that had been on the radio must have been just playing with him. The promised two minutes were almost up and there was no sign of any help. He was just starting to climb back to his feet when he noticed a most peculiar sound. It was deep, powerful rumble, that could only be made by a massive engine running wide open. And there was more than one. The creeper with the gun noticed it as well and began hurriedly searching for the source.
What happened next occurred in an instant, but to Owen it all seemed to happen in slow motion.
There was a loud double blip sound as something nearby lit up the radar screens in two of the creeper?s cars. Almost immediately it was followed by the distinct whistling sound of machine gun shells passing dangerously close. Both of the cars with creepers inside erupted into fireballs and a large black shadow passed them at high speed. A tremendous blast of warm air blew Owen and the creeper off their feet, as a massive twin-engined aircraft screamed past with a deafening roar less than 20 feet overhead.
The creeper made a break for his car, and Owen braced himself as the plane gracefully curved back for a second pass. A split-second burst from the nose guns was all it took to obliterate the remaining creeper and his car. The engines of the plane quickly dropped in pitch as it throttled back, and Owen stood in place with his jaw dropped as it slowed and came in for a landing nearby.
Whomever was piloting that thing had executed a lightning fast, pin-point accurate attack. And by diving in with the sun to his back, there was no way they could have seen him until it was too late.
Guardian angel indeed.
But that still didn?t explain who it was, or why he was here.
*************Chapter 9***************
The plane taxied up to a position near the flaming wreckage and turned a full 180 degrees as if lining up for a quick takeoff. The engines died down to calm idle, and the canopy slid open.
The pilot stood up and yelled, ?Quickly Owen, grab anything you need out of your car and get onboard before their backup arrives. They were only about 10 miles away.?
Owen hesitated, but since there didn?t seem to be any alternative he walked over to his pink Pan-Am to grab his gun and few other small personal items. He patted the ruined car on the hood and, suppressing a tear, he whispered, ?I?m going to miss you old girl. We had a great run??
He turned away from his mistress and quickly walked towards the plane and it?s patiently waiting pilot. When he got closer, the only markings he could make out on the slate-gray skin were some very faint USAAF markings that had been painted over, and the face of a beautiful red-haired woman on the side of the nose. He was about to ask how to get up to the cockpit when a metal ladder extended out of a slot in the wing behind the cockpit. Owen carefully climbed the ladder and glanced back as it retracted back into the wing.
He said to the pilot who was standing quietly on the wing, ?So, who are you??
The pilot removed his helmet, dropped it onto the seat, and extended his hand. ?Good to see you again, Owen. It?s been too long.?
Owen?s jaw dropped again when he recognized the face of a vigilante he hadn?t seen since the events in Las Vegas. It was Fnork. His hesitation vanished and he accepted the handshake immediately.
?Well I?ll be damned? you?re the last person I ever expected to see around here again,? he said with a huge grin. ?Good to see you again.?
Remembering that they didn?t have much time remaining, he quickly lowered himself into the space directly behind the pilot?s seat and watched as Fnork put his helmet back on, climbed into his own seat, and closed the canopy.
Fnork glanced back at Owen and said, ?Hang on!? Almost immediately the engines revved back up to speed with a roar, and the plane began to accelerate across the barren expanse. Owen was pressed hard into the back of the cockpit, and within seconds they were in the air and grabbing altitude fast. Owen looked out towards the ground and saw a cloud of dust moving towards the battle scene. He wished he could see the looks on the faces of those creepers when they found their all of their allies dead, and he was nowhere to be found. He watched as they slowly faded away into the distance behind.
Once he was sure they were safely away, he turned his attention back to the plane and the pilot whom he hadn?t seen in several years. He couldn?t help but admire the new set of ?wheels? Fnork was driving. The only other time he?d ever seen a plane like this one was in a war museum when he was just a kid?
Fnork must have known what he was thinking, because he glanced back to fill Owen in on the details.
?It?s a Lockhart F-38 Reaper, K-model. When the F-51 Palominos failed miserably against the Luftwaffe, the Army put all their interest back into the ?38?s that were dominating the Pacific. The K-model was the final variant that went into production, but only a few hundred were built before the war ended. Real shame they didn?t get them sooner, because the only thing that could catch one was a Messernacht 262, and those didn?t stand a chance in a dogfight. I got my hands on this one a few years ago for a real good price. It?s such a fine aircraft that it barely needed any modifications at all. All I really added was this small radar screen and a few other odds and ends. The armament is still exactly the same as it was in the war: four .50?s and a 20mm, all right on the tip of the nose.?
?Nice?? was Owen?s only response, because he was still in awe of everything that had just happened. His car was already forgotten, and now he was wishing he knew how to fly.
?Well, what do you say we find some place to put down and meet up with the others??
?Sounds good to me,? Owen replied ?Say, there?s a small airfield about three miles away from where we?re hiding out. That would probably be a good place to stash your plane for a while.? He pointed to the Northwest, where a small town was coming into view. Fnork nodded and rolled the F-38 slightly to the right to point towards the town.
*********Chapter 10***********
Once they were safely back on the ground, and Owen finished admiring the airplane, he found a phone to give Redline Fox a call. He was still so excited about what had just happened that it took several minutes of storytelling before he finally got the message through that he needed to be picked up at the airport. Twenty minutes later Redline pulled up in his Piranha, and the big black van following parked alongside.
Fnork and Redline Fox immediately greeted each other like they were old friends, but when Snake was introduced the handshake lasted only seconds, as they both eyed each other suspiciously. They had never met in person before, but both had heard plenty of rumors about the other. Snake had a particularly shady past, but he always said that was behind him. On the other hand, very little was known about Fnork?s past at all, but everything Snake had heard told him that it was much safer being with him than against him.
After the greetings were finished and Fnork was satisfied that his plane was secured, they headed back to the vehicles. Owen was climbing into the passenger seat of the van, and had already started telling Snake about what had happened since he left the hideout that morning. When the other two got to the Piranha, Jade was watching them intently from the back seat.
Once they were in the car and rolling again, Redline began relating to Fnork everything that had happened since his trip to Dante?s, and how Jade had come under his protection. Fnork didn?t respond at all until Redline was completely finished with his tale, at which point he said, ?There?s more going on here than it appears. Once everyone is settled back in your hideout, I?m going to head out to look around for some more clues to what is happening.?
?That?s a good idea, since none of those creepers will know you?re back, and won?t be watching for you,? Redline Fox replied.
?Owen?s car is wrecked, so I?ll take him to get a new one.?
A few minutes later they pulled into the hideout, where Owen once again started telling everyone about what happened to him that morning. Fnork noticed that this time around, there were a lot more creepers giving chase, and several other details had been exaggerated as well. He gave a small grin, but listened silently with the others. Halfway through the story, Redline was distracted by Jade tugging on his sleeve. She had a concerned look on her face, and her knees were pressed tightly together. He knew immediately what this meant, and led her off to the bathroom. They returned just as Owen finished the story.
Before he could start it over again, Redline interjected and said that they needed to discuss plans for what to do next. They agreed that Owen would go with Fnork for a few days to get a new car, while Redline and Snake would stay behind with Jade to find what information they could in the surrounding area. They would also try to get more information from Jade herself. So far she hadn?t provided anything new, though they could tell she was still hiding something.
They all took a day to rest, and to make preparations for the next few days. Early the following morning, Snake started up his van to take Fnork and Owen back to the airport, while Jade stayed behind with Redline Fox to tidy up the hideout a bit. Redline said they were going to head back to Dante?s later to see if he had heard any new rumors. He?d have to be careful though, in case any creepers were still in the area.
For those of you that missed it on the old TBR, or simply want to review what had already been posted, here it is:
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August 12th, 1986
With one hand leaning against the glass door of a refrigerator, Redline Fox pushed his face against the other one in front of him. Its surface frosted over from the temperature difference of its cool sealed air and the luke-warm air that wheezed out of the general store?s air conditioner. Eyeing the object of his desire on the other side of the glass, Redline opened the door quickly. He then moved as much of his body as he could possibly get inside while letting the door prop itself up against his back. He let out an exaggerated sigh as he took in a deep breath of the cold air. For a few short moments he imagined himself in his own little personal cave of coolness.
?Redline what the hell are you doing to my beverage selection!?? Dante, the store?s owner yelled.
Not willing to give up his temporary slice of heaven just yet, Redline Fox simply ignored his berating. It could only be temporary, after all he did have appointments to keep, and he didn?t have the money to pay for repairing the fridge if he managed to break it. Reluctantly, he took a small carton of milk in hand while shutting the door. As he made his way to the counter he snatched a few packs of various cookies from the racks.
Dante leaned against the counter as Redline Fox placed the items in front of him. He raised his eyebrow at the sweet selections.
?Pack of Cigarettes too.? Redline said plainly.
Dante took in a perplexed breath,
?Cookies and smokes, whatever you want Redline...? he said as he searched under the counter for the usual.
A rather stuck up looking man in a shabby suit standing next to the counter gave Redline Fox a long look as he was taking a pack of matches from the free box. Redline knew he was being stared at but ignored the man.
The suit piped up,
?You know smoking is bad for you,? he said rather obnoxiously.
Dante stopped in the middle of standing up. The suit obviously expected a reply.
?Stress is also bad for you, now get the hell away from me.? Redline Fox said in an annoyed tone.
The suit couldn?t take a hint.
?Hey, if you want to kill yourself that?s just fine with me, but why don?t you take a look at some of these photos I got here...?
The Suit presented a briefcase while he babbled on.
Dante was getting as irritated as Redline Fox but wasn?t sure what to do about the situation. He rang up Redline?s items as the Suit fumbled through his briefcase. Redline paid for his food, then quickly smacked the suit with the back of his hand. Not too hard, but just enough to get his attention. The suit immediately stopped talking.
?You are causing me unneeded stress, please get away from me before I have to throw your body in the trunk of my Piranha.?
Redline emphasized his car hoping the fool would get the point. Apparently the suit wasn?t as thick headed as the two other men though, without a word he packed up his briefcase, tipped his hat and ran almost full tilt to the parking lot.
?What a prick, a real shame though that a vigilante seems to scare some people so much, especially when we are sometimes their only line of defense.?
Redline smirked,
?Well, some of us are just so ugly I?m not surprised.?
Dante folded his arms across his chest.
?Ha, remember he ran away from your ugly mug not mine.? Dante said.
Redline Fox laughed to himself a little. ?Touch?.?
Dante leaned back on the counter as Redline Fox lit a cigarette, taking a conservative puff.
?So, you hear about Ride as of late, seems he is doing real well for himself...settling down with a family and all.? Dante said half in passing.
A tinge of past regret flashed across Redline?s thoughts. Redline Fox responded slowly, ?Well, that?s fine for some people I guess...I don?t really like kids that much, not the kind of responsibility I want.?
?You?ll probably change your mind someday man, you?re still a young guy.?
Redline Fox sighed, ?Already too old though, I think, besides the world is too messed up, I don?t want to raise any kids in a world like this.?
?Yeah...maybe...time will tell.?
?Yeah...?
Redline said as he moved towards the door, ?Take it easy Dante.?
Dante decided to start cleaning up the floor, and as he took mop and bucket in hand he yelled to Redline.
?I?m not even supposed to be here today, damn DP hasn?t...up to work...week.?
The last few bits where not audible as Redline Fox walked out into the baking afternoon sun. He puffed on the cigarette a few more times while making his way to his blood red Picard Piranha. He usually wouldn?t leave the windows down, but it was so hot he just didn?t care. With not much thought he dropped the paper bag containing the still chilled milk along with his cookies into the driver?s seat. He had found a beach towel with a fox face sewn on in the previous town?s flea market; and it was now employed to keep the hot black leather seat from burning his ass every time he sat down in it.
With smooth motions he put the almost done cigarette in his mouth and slid into the driver?s seat. A quick glance into the passenger?s seat caused him enough of a start to motivate him back out of the car. He opened the driver?s side door, stood up, then sat back down while looking into the passenger?s seat. Sitting there with seat-belt on was a small child, who from what he could tell was not more then four or five years old. Redline Fox stared back with the same bewildered blank expression that the small child held in her blue-green eyes. Her hair was a light, brown color, and there was a note in her hands, hands that where a little more dirty then would be desirable even for a little kid. Redline took the note out of her hands very gingerly, the child?s expression did not change as he looked her over while unfolding the note. It read ?in one hand I hold a gun?? Redline noticed that there was a small arrow at the bottom directing him to flip it over. He wasn?t sure if this was some kind of game or what as he read the rest. ??In the other, someone to protect.? It was half understanding, half confusion on his part. Was it because he was a vigilante, did this child?s parents think he could protect her? Redline was not very sure of what to do. The child?s eyes where on the paper bag; he looked down at the bag as well.
?Uhh...hey, you want something to eat?? Redline asked calmly.
The child?s expression didn?t change but she shook her head in a ?yes? motion.
?Ok, uh...well...I got some milk here.?
He took out the carton and shook it,
?And cookies, I guess it?s not the best meal but...uh...?
Redline Fox opened the cartoon of milk and put the paper bag down on the child?s lap, then the cookie bag on top of that.
?Uh...try not to get crumbs in the...car...? Redline realized he was still smoking his cigarette. Quickly he snatched it out of his mouth, singing his finger.
?You shouldn?t smoke, smoke is bad for you...OK...Ugh...wait right here OK? Redline said quickly, still trying to stay calm.
Kicking her feet slowly up and down, she drank some of the milk. She gave a slight smile as she bit into one of the cookies.
?Err...don?t go anywhere OK kid...??, Redline said as he got out of the car.
She nodded at him. Redline Fox had a hundred thoughts racing through his head as well as an ever increasing sense of anxiety in his chest.
***********Chapter 2*************
?I?ll be damned Redline.? Dante said as he read the note.
Dante leaned against the Piranha and poked his head into the window.
?Hey there sweety, where?s your parents at huh?? Dante attempted to coax a reply.
Not showing any signs of talking, she simply sat with her hands folded looking out of the car at him.
Redline Fox, ?This is crazy, who would just leave their kid in a weapon laden car.?
?It?s a messed up world remember.? Dante said flatly.
Conceding to him that point, Redline put his hands over his face and rubbed his eyes.
Off in the distance a rumbling drone was approaching the general store. It was immediately apparent of to what the sound was for Dante, his special customers.
Dante spoke sternly, ?You better get going, here take these.?
He handed Redline an overnight bag. It was filled with children?s clothing.
?Problem?? Redline Fox asked.
Dante shook his head, ?Maybe, depends if the biker?s are tanked up already or not. If not I?ll just give him a few cases of beer and they will love me for the rest of the month. Be surprised how useful people like that can be if they are loyal. Not a place for your new friend though.?
Obviously Dante was right, at least something was clear at the moment.
?Alright Dante, be careful...? Redline said.
Dante smirked, ?I know how to handle them, everything will be fine. You?re the one that needs to take extra care, now get going.?
Both vigs shook hands firmly; a way of saying that they had each other?s back, Redline Fox quickly threw the bag into the backseat, climbed into his car, and backed out of the parking lot. He pointed the car in the opposite direction of the biker?s then took off down the road. The Piranha?s speedometer steadily raised, the powerful car increasing in speed as it barreled down the empty highway. Every now and then he would dare a glance at the kid who had come from nowhere, and was seemingly now his responsibility?At least until he could find a decent orphanage.
?So uh?What?s your name?? he stammered, obviously a bit unnerved by having a child just dropped into his life. The child looked up at Redline from her seat on the passenger side, big blue-green eyes shimmering in the midday sun. Glancing over again Fox asked,
?Well? Do you have a name??
She just sat there, staring at him, head cocked to one side. ?Oh well, so much for idle conversation? he thought. He flipped on the radio and they both sat silently listening to the news reporter on the radio. More reports on economic depression, and the gas crisis. Pavement moved endlessly underneath the car, and Redline was able to forget about the kid for awhile. Suddenly the radio died, and Redline turned his head to see the kid had just flipped the switch.
?Don?t like the radio, huh kid??
She shook her head once and just went back to looking at him.
?Err? Something you want kid?? asked Redline.
The girl nodded her head once and looked down at the floor. Still not quite understanding Redline continued
?Well? what is it??
He thought he heard her mutter something? but Fox couldn?t quite make it out. ?What was that??
Looking up again at Redline she replied, a bit louder this time
?Potty.?
Redline was a bit stunned by this at first and didn?t know quite what to say, so he just kept on driving for a moment.
?Ugh? Like now?? said Redline, the kid just nodded her head.
Shaking his head Redline pushed down on the accelerator. There was a gas stop and restaurant coming up soon anyway. The car could use some gas, and he could use some food? and she could use the bathroom.
?Can you hold it for a couple of minutes? We will be at a bathroom soon.? He told her.
Redline glanced over and noticed that the child had already crossed her legs, and they seemed to be shaking.
?Oh no you don?t.? he said to himself, as his foot pressed down on the gas again. The Piranha picked up speed again; he was pushing 70mph in a 55 zone on bingo fuel. Redline kept glancing over at the kid, worried that she might ?burst? at any moment, and that would not be good for his car. She started to squirm more and more. Just when he thought she was going to explode, the Wagon Wheel and Gas 4 Cash came into sight. The Piranha ripped into the parking lot and pulled up as close to the bathrooms as possible.
Redline hopped out and ran around to the passenger side, opening the door and helping the child out. She hurried towards the bathroom doors in an odd limp-like jog, all the while holding her lower belly. Redline quickly walked over to her and nodded towards the bathroom.
?I?ll wait here, don?t worry.?
The child looked up at him and shook her head. She reached out and grabbed his hand.
?Oh?Oooh, no uh, sorry kid...? Redline said, taking a step back.
Stomping her feet, she tried to pull Redline towards the bathroom.
?Look, I?m not gonna do it ok? I?m sorry.?
She let go of her hands and put her hands to her face. Redline was about to speak, when she looked back up at him, tears in her eyes.
?I don?t wanna get left behind again.? Lips trembling, tears started to roll down her cheeks.
Jaw dropped, Redline just stared back at the crying child.
?Oh? no kid, I wasn?t going to leave, I promise.?
She stopped crying and looked at him for a moment, before reaching for his hand again. Redline took her tiny hand, in his what seemed to be giant hand now, and led her towards the bathroom. He pushed open the door to the ?Men's? bathroom and started to go forward, but he turned around to see that the girl had stopped.
She looked at the bathroom and shook her head.
?This one.? She told him as she headed for the ladies washroom.
Redline?s face changed to an expression of horror.
?Whoa, not so fast there?I can?t go in there. We can use the men?s bathroom, don?t worry.?
Once again her lip started trembling, and she tugged on his hand. Before he knew it Redline was halfway in the door to the ladies? restroom. With his head through the doorway, he called out,
?Uhh? Is anyone in here? I err? have a child?who needs to use the bathroom, and she won?t use the?uh?men?s washroom. So I'm uh, coming in.?
Redline slowly walked in, with the child incessantly tugging on his hand for him to hurry up. She went into the first stall, and Redline let out a sigh of relief. The bathroom was empty. Minute by painstaking minute ticked by, and Fox just stood there for what seemed like an eternity. Just to pass the time he had washed his hands five times. Just as he was about to go back for a sixth washing a distinct click-clack of high heels could be heard on the tiles of the bathroom floor. Redline's Heart leaped up into his throat as he whirled around, red faced, to find a now startled, plump, middle age woman staring at him. Fox was at a loss for words and just stood there blushing furiously. The woman, picking up quite obviously on his embarrassment, broke the awkward silence, "Pardon me, sir.. but am I in the wrong bathroom?"
Quietly Fox managed to say "Uh no... I?m here with uh well my... little girl... She didn't want to go into the men's washroom you see..."
A smile slowly spread across the woman?s face until she was grinning like an idiot. "Well isn't that just darling. What's her name?"
Before even thinking about it "Jade" rolled off of Redline's tongue.
"What a beautiful name." The flushing of a toilet cut the lady short.
'Jade' Emerged from the stall and looked up at the woman, staring and saying nothing.
The lady looked down at Jade and then gave a distasteful look towards Redline. She took her by the hand and washed her up in the sink Redline quickly thanked the lady and made a hasty retreat. Redline let out a sigh and walked towards the door.
Once they were outside, Redline could feel his stomach grumbling. She had eaten all his cookies, and drank his milk. ?Well kid? I?m about as hungry as it gets, so I?m going to get some supper. You coming?? She nodded her head and they headed towards the diner.
************Chapter 3*************
Several miles away, black fuzzy dice swayed from the rearview mirror of a jet-black van, .50 slugs rolled around on the dashboard. Hands gloved in fingerless leathers gripped the custom chrome chain steering wheel. A cigarette held in the fingers wafted a thin smoke. Raised to parched lips it gave one more long drag, then was jammed into an ashtray, extinguishing any spark of life that had remained. Reflective aviators glinted in the sun, flanked on both sides by long, locks of curly hair that flowed down past tanned shoulders. Three necklaces: a silver cross, a skull with crossed guitars beneath it and a length of steel chain held together by a small padlock, all of them hanging against the background of a tight sleeveless shirt adorned with a chaotic pattern of skulls n? cross bones. From the ends of the shirt protruded strong arms, not so bulky as they were toned. All the way down the left arm was a large, intricate tattoo of a rattlesnake that ended on the hand with the head of the rattler, mouth open and fangs beared. On the right shoulder, an ornate cross with skulls on the ends and in the center, below that, just above the elbow, a top-hatted skull wreathed in barbwire with two revolvers crossed behind it. From the elbow to the wrist, another intricate tattoo of a snake; a cobra, the coils of it?s body on the wrist with it?s hooded head extended up to the elbow, this one also appeared to be in a striking position. Around the waist, a belt with rows of shiny, pyramid-like spikes worn loosely around some black leather riding pants that culminated in a pair of high, leather boots with straps around the ankle. By no matter of irony, the man to whom all of this belonged, was named Snake.
Snake?s black Phaedra Street Van sped down the two-lane blacktop. It was a custom job; equipped with black racing-style rims, chrome-edged fender flares, a spade-shaped dome window built into each side, tinted windows, a custom chrome grille, ground effects, extra-wide tires in the back and Snake?s favorite addition, the regular shift knob had been replaced with a chrome skull whose eyes flashed red every time the van changed gears. Snake?s watch told him that it was almost seven o?clock and he was hungry.
Several miles down the road was a restaurant, The Wagon Wheel. A place where someone could relax, eat something and forget the stresses of auto-vigilantism. Not the best restaurant around, but it held sentimental value to many vigilantes, most of whom had saved it from destruction by creeper raids at one point or another. The buildings appeared in the distance, merely specks, but were expanding rapidly.
When Snake pulled into the lot, there was only one armed car he could see immediately, a blood red Piranha. He didn?t realize it at first, but then it clicked. The car belonged to Redline Fox; a well-known vigilante in the area and a close friend of Snake?s. He grabbed his keys from the ignition, and stepped out of his van. Near the service entrance of the restaurant he noticed two identical Clydesdales, and both were heavily armed. But with the demand for tighter and tighter security these days, he assumed that a private security firm owned them. The door chimed as he walked in, his bootstraps ?clinking? with each step, and he scanned the booths probing for Redline?s face. He spotted it in a booth near a window.
Merely looking over the menu made Redline?s stomach growl fiercely. The waitress came over and he ordered a grilled cheese sandwich with fries, and an extra fatty grease filled hamburger. The waitress gave him a little wink and turned towards the girl.
?What do you want, pumpkin??
She pointed to something on her menu, and the waitress nodded her head and walked away. Redline looked across the table at her and thought for a moment. ?So??, as he began to speak another voice cut in.
?Hey Red??
Snake stopped dead in mid-sentence, surprised beyond belief at what, or more correctly who, was sitting next to Redline in the booth. A little brown-haired girl who Snake figured couldn?t have been more then six years old.
At the sound of Snake?s voice, Redline turned to see who had attempted to address him. Upon recognition of his old friend, Redline quickly got to his feet, grabbed Snake?s limp hand and gave it a firm shake.
?So where?ve you been, man??
Snake?s reply was mumbled and distracted.
?Oh?uh, I went back to?umm?Hollywood for a few months to?ah?catch up with some people??
Redline couldn?t help but notice Snake?s eyes were solidly transfixed on his new friend.
?Hey Snake, let?s take a walk, okay??
?Uhhh?ya, right?walk.?
Redline turned back to his charge, who was listening attentively to the whole dialogue.
?Stay here while I go talk to my friend, okay??
She smiled and nodded at him, then proceeded to grab a crayon and started working the maze on her place mat. Redline put an arm on Snake?s shoulder and led the stunned man out the front door. Once outside, Snake very rapidly became lucid again.
?Holy shit, man! You had a kid?!?
?Uh, not really??
?Whaddaya mean, ?not really?! This is as fuckin? black an? white as they come! Either she?s yours or she isn?t!
?She?s not my kid.?
?Fuck, man! Yours or not, you know what you do for a livin?, this is no place for some??
Redline slapped Snake with an open hand. He didn?t think he?d hit him that hard, but a resounding smack proved otherwise.
?Ow! What the fuck??
Redline interjected before Snake got really carried away. ?Snake, shut up and listen! I found her in my car earlier today, someone dumped her there with this note.?
Redline produced the note the child had been holding. Snake read the note; the perplexed look on his face clearly stated his confusion.
?Well, what the fuck does that mean??
?It means that someone thought that since I?m a vigilante I could protect from someone or something. But I?ll be damned if I know what.?
?Man, that?s fucked up. She got any parents or anythin? like that??
?Got no clue, she?s hardly said a damn thing since I found her. Don?t even know her name. Well sorta anyway... She calls herself Jade now.?
?Well from what I saw, she obviously understands English, and you say she can talk, so let?s see if we can coax it out of her.?
?Worth a shot, I guess.?
The duo went back inside. The waitress had delivered the meals and the girl was digging into a plate of chicken wings. Snake squatted down at the end of the booth and Redline took his seat opposite her. Snake quite apparently intimidated the girl and understandably so, she shied away from him, sliding towards the window. Snake was not discouraged by this and tired to strike up a conversation.
?Hey there, my friend was wonderin? what your name is. If ya don?t want to tell him, that?s just fine. Would ya like to tell me your name??
The girl shook her head side-to-side defiantly and frowned. Redline sighed and mumbled something inaudible under his breath. Snake spoke to Redline.
?Hey, relax man, I got an idea.?
?OK?say, how about we swap names. I?ll tell you mine and you tell me yours, that sound good to you??
She stared at him for a moment, contemplating the idea. Finally, she nodded in concurrence.
?Alright, I?ll go first, my name?s Snake.?
As Snake spoke he pointed out his rattlesnake tattoo. She giggled at the sight of it.
?Now it?s your turn, what?s your name??
She looked at Snake and Redline with an uneasy glance, then in a timid, little voice, she produced the name.
?Jade??
?Well, it?s very nice to meet you, Jade.?
With that Snake sat down in the booth next to her. By now, Redline had wolfed down almost all of his meal.
"Now what, man??
Redline?s reply was obscured by great globs of half-chewed beef and bun.
?As?er?bout?he?paren??
?What??
Redline swallowed and repeated.
?Ask her about her parents.?
Snake turned back to Jade, who was now enthralled with the various tattoos on his arm.
?Jade, do ya know where your parents are??
She shook her head and continued to stare at the intricate designs on Snake?s arm.
?Hmmm, I?ll tell ya what, Jade. You can look at my tattoos all ya want if ya tell us where your parents are.?
She struggled with what she was trying to say.
?Umm?daddy got hurt, but mommy said he?ll be OK?Then mommy said we have to go away?uhh?she gave me a note to hold and said to wait in the red car. Mommy said she would come and get me in a few days??
She trailed off. Then looked straight up at Snake, he was amazed by her big, blue-green eyes. They were really rather beautiful and he found himself looking deeper and deeper into them. She spoke again.
?Daddy had a friend named Cobra... They used to go driving around at night time... But Mommy never let me go with him... ?
Snake shot a quick look at Redline, that was important and they both knew it. Snake looked at Jade hoping to get something else out of her, but her eyes had started to wander about. Suddenly she cringed and let out a small whimper, she grabbed his shirt and pulled herself right next to him. He thought it was a rather bold thing to do until he saw the expression of terror on her face.
***********Chapter 4***************
?What is it? What?s wrong??
She pointed towards the bar, Snake immediately noticed a man dressed in tan slacks, a long-sleeved button-up shirt and tie, who was staring right at them. As soon as Snake made eye contact with him, the man turned away. The waitress walked by again and put the bill on the table, Redline picked it up and grumbled something about it being too expensive, but forked over the cash. Snake very subtlety pulled out his .50 Magnum and checked how many bullets were in the clip; it was full. The pistol was a large, silver-plated semi-automatic. The .50 caliber round it used was capable of shooting through a 2-inch steel door and still maintain enough velocity to go clean through someone?s torso. Snake knew this from a personal experience at his home in West Hollywood. He didn?t want to have a gunfight in the restaurant, too many normals around, but if this guy took a shot at them he wanted to be ready to take him down. Redline noticed Snake checking his rounds.
?Hey, man, what?s up??
Snake nodded towards the bar.
?The dude at the bar in the tie, he?s been starin? at us, Jade in particular.
?Hmmm, maybe we better get ought to get out of here.?
?Right.?
Redline pulled out his 9mm Beretta and checked the ammo under the table, then turned to Jade.
?Are you done, Jade??
She nodded.
?Uh-huh.?
?Well, it?s time to go, we?re going to find a place to stay tonight.?
Both men put their pistols in their belts and covered them with their shirts. Both of them knew that waving a gun around in a public place is not a great idea at even the worst of times. Snake got out of the booth, Jade followed suit, then took hold of Redline?s outstretched hand. The man at the bar didn?t pay much attention as the three of them walked out the front door. They were almost to their cars when Redline saw the man running towards them, with a large smile on his face.
?Howdy there, Stranger!? said the man loudly as he approached them.
The man stood in front of Redline, with Snake to his left. Redline nudged Jade behind himself and spoke to the respectable-looking man. ?Who are you?? Redline inquired.
?Name?s Jake. I see you found my girl,?
A look of terrible sadness swept across the man?s face.
?She was kidnapped four days ago, and I?ve been looking for her ever since. I?m so glad you found her, words cannot express the joy in my heart. I would do anything to pay you back. I was offering a reward of $50,000 to the person that found her, it?s yours if you want it.?
A sigh of relief escaped Redline?s lips, he relaxed a little. However, Snake remained suspicious, Jade was still hiding behind Redline. ?If he really was her father she would have run up to him with open arms?, thought Snake. Redline now spoke to the man in a much friendlier tone.
?I?m so glad I found her parents, it?s not safe out here for a child. Here, just let me get her stuff would ya? Where are you parked??
The man responded joyfully,
?Great, I can take her from here. We are just parked over there.?
Jake gestured with a nod of the head.
Redline already had his head inside the car and didn?t care to look, fumbling about in the back for the bag of clothes Dante had given him for her to wear. Snake looked in the direction that Jake had nodded. Three men stood in the shadow of the restaurant, beside the heavily armed Clydesdales. Redline spoke from inside the car,
?Well, alright then?just a second I know I have a bag of her stuff in the back??
Snake made a decision; he grabbed his gun by the barrel and pistol-whipped Jake in the side of the head, and Jake went down hard. Redline pulled his head out of the car and his pistol was already blazing, shots fired towards the men in the dark. When his clip was empty Redline grabbed Jade from the ground where she had crumpled into a little ball quivering in fear, and gently tossed her into the passenger side of his Piranha. Fox jumped across the hood, as a hail of bullets crashed about him, shattering the passenger side window. He quickly dove into the driver seat, flipped the ignition, and the engine exploded to life.
Snake was still returning fire, his Magnum booming thunderously with each shot. One man took a round in the chest; blood and flesh flew from the exit wound as he fell to the ground.
The shattered passenger window was in hundreds of tiny particles that had showered over Jade as she wrapped her arms around her head. Redline shouted to her, ?Jade! Stay down!?
Redline sat up straight to return fire, a bullet cracked off the roof, missing his head by a distance that he didn?t care speculate, so close he could feel its heat as it ripped through the air past him. He ducked down close to the wheel.. More bullets struck the passenger door and whistled through the windshield, leaving large holes in glass surrounded by spidery cracks. This was too dangerous; they were putting Jade at risk. Snake was now on the other side of his van, firing across the hood. Redline shouted over to him.
?Snake, we gotta get out of here, Jade?s gonna get hurt!?
?Right, man, let?s roll!!?
Snake jumped behind the wheel and slammed shut the door of his van in a fluid motion that only experience could perfect, his engines roared to life in unison. Snake?s tires spun and squealed, then grabbed the asphalt, vaulting the van over the concrete parking stop; he fishtailed across the adjoining lot of the Gas 4 Cash and onto the highway. Redline peeled out in reverse, halfway across the parking lot he pulled the hand brake and jerked the wheel hard. The Piranha responded by spinning about back to front, then with lightning fast reflexes, Redline shifted into first and pushed the accelerator to the floor. The tires screamed against the massive flow of torque as they thrusted forward. Bullets ricocheted off the bodywork with an incessant ?ting? sound. Redline pulled the wheel to the right until it locked up, pinning himself and Jade against the side of the car as it swung out of the lot, tires still smoking as Redline burned the rubber off them. Another bullet shattered the rear window. He straightened out the wheel and gunned the Piranha down the highway after Snake?s van. Fleeing was not something he was used to. However, he couldn?t risk a fight while Jade was with him. If anything were to happen to her he wouldn?t be able to forgive himself. Looking down he saw that she was sobbing quietly in her seat.
?Its OK now, Jade?He?s gone, you won?t have to worry about him anymore.?
*******Chapter 5********
Those blue-green eyes looked back at him, now wet with tears. Some sort of paternal instinct kicked in and he reached over, wiping a tear off her cheek, while trying to pay attention to the road.
?It?s getting pretty late now, we should find a place to spend the night. Could you get the map out from the glove department??
Quiet as usual, Jade complied and went digging through the mess Redline had left in there until she found the map he wanted. Redline grabbed the CB microphone.
?Breaker, breaker, this is Redline Fox, come in Hollywood.?
Snake responded.
?Roger, Redline Fox, this is Hollywood, come back.?
?Where?re we gonna go, man? Over.?
?I was thinkin? about the safe house off I-79, we?re 20 miles out now, could be there in 10-15 if we hustle. Over.?
?Alright, sounds like a plan. Redline Fox, over and out.?
Redline hung up the microphone and looked over at Jade. She was staring at him with an expression of questioning.
?It?s gonna be alright now, we?re going to a safe house, no can get at you there.?
?What about my mommy??
?Don?t worry, we?re going to find your Mom, I promise.?
Redline was not one to throw around promises, but when he made one he kept it, no matter what.
Fourteen minutes later, Redline pulled into a small parking lot, flanked on three sides by reasonably large buildings with garage doors. The ten-foot iron gate slammed shut behind them, locking into place. The sign on the gate had fallen victim to the test of time and was no longer legible. It had once read ?U-Truck Storage Lockers?. Ten-foot iron fences, topped with razor wire surrounded the whole compound. Security cameras sat on the corners of the buildings, a green utility van sat in the lot beside one of the buildings, a small dish on top of it rotated consistently, sending out its radar signal while thick cables running out of the van channeled the information inside. Redline honked his horn, several seconds later one of the garage doors opened. Florescent light flooded from the doorway, illuminating the small lot. Redline pulled in, put the ?Ranha in park and killed the engine. As he got out, a familiar and very welcome face appeared in front of him. None other than Owen, they had been friends since the start of the auto-felon crime wave. There was not a soul on the planet that Redline trusted more than Owen. Redline stuck out a hand, Owen grabbed it and pulled him into a hug. He felt like crying, there was no one who would make him happier to see. Once Owen released his hug, he stood back and spoke.
?It?s been too long, man. Snake filled me in. Where is she??
?In the passenger seat, fast asleep, must be dirt tired.?
?Let?s get her into a bed.?
Owen walked around to the other side of the car and opened the door. Jade was curled up, sleeping soundly. He picked her up ever so gently; she seemed like a newborn child compared to Owen, standing 6? 5?. He carried her into the main room, with Redline in tow. Snake was seated at table with the CB and radar equipment in front of him. He got to his feet as they walked in.
?How is she??
?She?s fine, just tired, that?s all.?
?Good, I haven?t had a single blip except for you since I got in, we must?ve lost ?em. I made up a bed for her, it?s in the back room.?
?Great, thanks man.?
?I?ll cover watch until 3:00am, then Owen, you take over for me until dawn.?
?You got it, Snake.?
Owen carried Jade into the back room and laid her down on the foldout cot Snake had setup. Redline put a sheet over her and a pillow under her head. Owen plugged in a nightlight near the bed. Then switched off the lights as they both left the room; Redline closed the door behind him. In a soft voice he spoke to the other two men.
?That?s one tough kid.?
?Ya, she is,? replied Snake.
?What are we going to do with her?? Snake shook his head wearily.
?I don?t know, man, I just don?t know?but you two ought to get some sleep, we?ll figure it out tomorrow.?
?Alright man.?
?I?ll wake you up at 3:00, there?s Coke in the ?fridge if you?ll need it.?
?Ok, thanks.?
Redline and Owen both retired to their quarters, leaving Snake with a radar screen, a pack of cigarettes and half a bottle of Jack Daniel?s. It was unusually cold for an August night in the desert. A native of California, Snake couldn?t stand cold, and after much rummaging about he finally found a blanket; it wasn?t much but at least it made the night watch bearable. The radar screen spinning, his watch hand spinning, radar bleeping, watch ticking. Bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep, tick, tick, tick, bleep?He couldn?t take it anymore, his watch read 1:47.
?Another fuckin? hour and 13 minutes of this shit,? Snake thought aloud.
It took all his strength and willpower not to fall asleep in the remainder of his shift. Two trucks doing graveyard runs had sped past, but that was it. He wasn?t used to so much nothingness; maybe it had to do with the fact they were in the middle of nowhere. None of them even knew the exact location of the safe house, just one of those things that gets passed on. They were somewhere in Arizona, close to the Nevada border. Snake didn?t know how long he had been up, but a quick check of his watch told him it was 3:04. Wrought with sleep deprivation he shuffled into Owen?s room. Snake leaned over Owen and gave him a shake, hardly after Snake touched the sleeping man there was a flurry of motion and before he knew it there was a .45 being shoved against his forehead. Owen relaxed the gun once he realized who it was.
?Jesus Christ, Snake. You ever heard of just telling someone to get up?? Snake?s reply was muffled and almost incoherent.
?Sorry, man. You?re on shift?? He trailed off, practically falling asleep in mid-sentence.
Owen spoke softly as he helped Snake into the bed.
?Thanks, man. Sleep well.?
The only response was Snake?s deep, nasal snoring.
Owen grabbed a dark blue bowling shirt he had thrown on the floor, noticed that his patch was coming off the shoulder. He had sewn a Canadian flag patch to the shoulders of some of his clothes, just a matter of pride he told anyone who asked . He walked out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him. He took his seat in front of the radar equipment, now what was he going to do until the others woke up? An idea struck him and took several quarters from his pocket then grabbed a plastic cup.
********Chapter 6**********
As the tedium of watching an empty road and the repetitive clicking of the quarters on the table started to wear away at his senses, his mind began to wander. He couldn?t help but think about how much things had changed in the past few years. In fact, the events in Las Vegas just over two years ago are what changed everything.
It was the last time so many creepers had been organized into a single army. Since that time, they had all scattered to their own territories and gangs, and the time they didn?t spend making small raids into Vigilante-controlled areas, they spent warring with each other. There were several different leaders that each thought themselves to be the rightful successor to The Wraith, but none had managed to do anything more than piss the other leaders off.
But the change that really intrigued Owen, was how much his close friend Redline Fox had changed. A mere three years ago, he was a loner that avoided associating with anyone aside from his sometime partner The Professional, and on rare occasions, Owen. He always fought the good fight, but many other vigilantes questioned his true motives. All but Owen, that is. Owen was one of the few that not only counted Redline as an ally, but as a friend too. The times they worked together were few and far between, but something had always connected them, almost as if they were brothers.
And now, after all that time spent as a loner, here was Redline actively seeking out help from allies, and on top of that, he was caring for a small child. Both things that seemed completely out of character for him, that is, at least until Vegas.
Everything could be traced back to Vegas.
After DIRM had been taken to the hospital, the rest of the group, CADman, Ace English, Shamus, Azz, Fnork, and Owen had gone out in small groups to survey the battle scenes and look for any survivors. The remains of The Professional?s Clydesdale and Redline?s Piranha had been found almost immediately, and both drivers were laid to rest a few days later. It wasn?t until just after the funeral that Owen was told that Redline?s coffin had been empty; his body had never been found. From that moment on, Owen had made it his all-consuming goal to find out what happened to Redline. He took on that quest with such fanaticism that almost everyone thought he had slipped into a state of madness. Truth be told, he wasn?t far off. When he wasn?t out searching hospitals, city morgues, and every nook and cranny his friend could possibly be, he was in his garage, painstakingly rebuilding the red Piranha from the ground up. Any time someone would question him why he was wasting so much time on the twisted wreckage, his answer was the same, ?Redline will want his car when he comes back.?
He restored that car to almost mint condition, but went out of his way to preserve the few battle scars that Redline himself had refused to fix as a matter of pride. Redline had a story for every one of those scratches, dents, and holes, and Owen had memorized every single one of them.
In what was a remarkable coincidence, the very day he put the finishing touches on the paintjob of the rebuilt Piranha, he stopped in to a small hospital in southern Nevada that he never even knew existed. In fact, he would have missed it completely if he hadn?t stopped by a small frontage road to watch the sunset and reflect on his life. He was in the middle of contemplating whether or not he should give up his seemingly hopeless quest, when he spotted a very old and almost unrecognizable ambulance turn onto a small side road up ahead in the distance. He almost didn?t follow it because he?d all but decided to give up, but at the last minute changed his mind and went to investigate anyway. Looking back, he was glad that he did. The small hospital it lead him to, if it could even be called that, was little more than a storage facility for John Doe coma patients that had been given little to no hope of ever waking up. Owen was absolutely shocked when he saw the battered, but still recognizable face of Redline Fox staring blankly up at the ceiling in one of the old beds. One of the orderlies told Owen that he had been found by a passing tourist inside a wrecked car, in the middle of a grisly battle scene. They?d thought he was dead from the bullet wound to his torso until they discovered that he was still breathing, but just barely. He was taken to a hospital in Reno and stabilized, but since no identification was found on him he was classified as a John Doe and moved into the coma ward. After a few weeks without waking or having anyone show up to identify him, he was moved to this small facility.
With Owen?s help, Redline was moved to a larger medical center a few miles from his current hideout. Owen visited him on a daily basis, but even then it took another two months before he finally regained consciousness. What finally brought him out was remarkable in and of itself. Owen had started driving the Piranha when he went to visit, and had made a habit of parking outside Redline?s window and revving the mighty V-8 engine to see if the sound might bring his friend back. Redline?s condition changed almost immediately, and less than a week later he was fully conscious, and almost ready to check out.
After learning all that Owen had done for him, Redline vowed to never again abandon his friends and allies like he had done so many times in the past. He owed a debt to Owen that he might never be able to repay, yet, somehow, that didn?t bother him one bit.
Owen, still staring out onto the darkened highway, smiled to himself. Sometimes it took that kind of dedication to bring someone back from the dead. And sometimes, the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. Redline?s demeanor quickly returned to how it had been before the incident, but even so, most of the apathy that had dominated his personality was gone. He still preferred to work alone, but was no longer appalled at the idea of calling for backup if he needed it. And he showed a great deal more sympathy towards ?normals? now too. Back then, he never would have taken in a child that needed help, but here he was, with a little girl named Jade?
He didn?t know how long his mind had been wandering, but sunlight was now starting to pour over the horizon. Against the orange background something was casting a large, black shadow that was reaching up close to the sparse cloud cover. He fumbled around the equipment table, Snake was such a pig, couldn?t he just try to keep this place clean. He found the object he desired under a half-empty bag of chips. Binoculars. He raised them to the horizon and focused in on the tall shadow. It was a column of thick, black smoke. He couldn?t range it to anything, but the sheer height of the plume led him to conclude that it had to be one hell of a big fire. He didn?t want to leave the safe house, but he had to check it out.
Snake opened his eyes slowly, everything was blurred, and as it came into focus he saw Owen standing over him.
?Uhh, what time is it??
?It?s quarter after six.?
?What!! I?ve got four more hours of sleep comin?. Fuck off!?
?Come on, man, there?s a fire out there, I need you to cover for me so I can check it out.?
?No fuckin? way!?
?I?ll buy you two packs of cigs and a sixxer of Budweiser.?
?Make it three packs and imported beer.?
?Deal.?
?Alright, go check out your stupid, fuckin? fire, I?ll cover for ya.?
?Thanks man!?
Owen ran out to the garage as Snake struggled to get to his feet. The windows were down in his trademark pink Pan Am, so he grabbed the A pillar and slide in, landing in the driver?s seat with the kind of precision only practice could provide. He turned the keys in the ignition and basked in the throaty rumble as the engine came to life. He revved several times then took off, tooting the horn as he passed the window; he could vaguely see Snake flipping him the bird as he sped away.
With the speedometer reading 100mph, it seemed like he?d only left the safe house for a few seconds when he crested a hill and spotted the source of the fire. It was a Gas Palace, flames raging from the pumps and the station, reaching upwards at least 30 feet.
He skidded to a stop on the road in front of the inferno. As he got out of the car he was assaulted by the immense heat, as a backdraft blew out the front doors of the station forcing him to shield his face from scorching air. Over the roar of the flames he heard a familiar sound, the sound of his radar detecting a target. Owen ducked into his car, one enemy target closing fast. Suddenly the radar began beeping wildly as several more dots appeared on the screen.
?Oh shit!!?
He jumped back into his car and peeled away in the opposite direction of the advancing force. He looked back out of the rear windshield, through the heat haze he could make out 6 little dots and their respective dust trails, but there could be more of them in those trails.
*************Chapter 7**************
A fiery hot tracer streaked past the driver?s side window, and was followed by a series of dull thuds as live ammunition hammered into the back of the pink Pan-Am. Owen glanced at his rearview mirror and counted three creepers drifting in and out of view, each firing madly at him. From the sounds of projectiles hitting the aft armor plates, he estimated there were at least three more chasing him that he couldn?t see.
Owen hit the switch to activate the oil dropper and held it for a full two seconds. At nearly 90 mph he left a patch of oil over 250 feet long, bit it did little more than cause his pursuers to skid slightly and lose a little ground. He cursed when he saw that not only were the lead cars still within firing range, but now the low oil pressure light for his dropper was blinking too, meaning it was almost empty.
He fumbled for his radio and yelled into it for help. ?Mayday! Mayday! This is Owen, requesting immediate assistance east of the Gas Palace! I am under attack by a large pack of creepers and can?t hold out much longer! Mayday! Mayday!? He received only static as a reply. Either the creepers were jamming him somehow, or he was out of range of anyone that could possibly help. It was more likely the latter since he was heading farther and farther out into the desert, but at this point it no longer mattered. ?Shit?, he muttered to himself.
He swore again when he realized he was nearing the edge of a massive bluff overlooking a barren valley. He was rapidly running out of room, and there was no choice but to stand and fight. He was outnumbered at least 6 to 1 and knew it was a hopeless fight before it began. To no one in particular he said, ?Well, let?s see how many of these bastards I can take with me??
He yanked the emergency brake and spun the car sideways, smoothly dropping the transmission into reverse at precisely the right moment. He?d performed the maneuver countless times before so it was almost second nature to him, but this time the usual split-second over-revving of the engine was accompanied by a harsh grinding sound as the transmission slowly began to destroy itself. It still held for the moment so he focused entirely on the pack of creepers. As the nose of his car came about, he counted eight hostile cars, not the six he originally thought.
Owen immediately opened fire on the nearest car and tore apart the engine compartment with his bumper mounted machine guns. The rest of the creepers swerved out of his line of fire and began to circle back. A loud beeping echoed through the driver compartment telling Owen that a missile was being locked on. He flipped a switch for his magma karpoon so it would activate the instant it was fired rather than on impact, and gave a wicked grin. The beeping became a continuous tone, and a smoke trail streaked away from one of the attackers. He pressed the launch button for the karpoon and sent it at the nearest car. The missile immediately changed direction to chase the new target, and followed it right into the side of a beat-up brown Royale, which exploded into a ball of fire. He sent another magma karpoon out into the fray, and a second missile followed it into the front end of a Cavera. Five left.
He wasn?t escaping unscathed, but was fortunate that most of the creepers were using small caliber machine guns. Even so, there was now a steady plume of white smoke pouring out of his hood, and the engine was starting to miss. It was the most disheartening sound a vigilante could ever hear. His car was dying.
?Come on baby, hold together just a little longer?? Owen whispered to his car.
Another creeper, clearly inexperienced with combat, took a hit to his right front tire, spun out of control, and went careening off the edge of the bluff. Owen sent his final remaining magma karpoon at the bright orange Manta that was firing all the missiles. It missed to the side by mere inches, but by a stroke of luck the Manta loosed a missile at the same instant. The missile violently changed direction to follow the karpoon and slammed into the ground right next to the Manta. The resulting explosion sent the car cart-wheeling away in a ball of flame.
There were only three creepers left, but Owen had run out of luck. His transmission was now completely destroyed and the engine was giving little more than a weak cough. He had managed to get the car into neutral before the transmission went out entirely so he still had a little momentum to use before he was finished. The creepers saw his slowing as well, so they started to hang back rather than risk getting killed by a crippled car.
Owen grabbed his radio and called out to the creepers on the common channel ?What?s the matter? Are you guys afraid of something?? They didn?t respond, but didn?t fire back either. ?If that?s how it?s gonna be?? He turned his car towards the edge of the bluff, and used his final remaining moments to taunt them some more. ?I?m not going to give you bastards the satisfaction of killing me!? He leaned back in his seat and let go of the wheel. It was only a matter of seconds before he went sailing off the edge of the cliff and into oblivion.
Incredibly, one of the creepers rocketed up next to Owen with a shot of nitrous and rammed the front quarter panel of the pink car to prevent it from going over the edge. The pink Pan-Am ground to a halt about ten feet from the cliff, while the remaining three creepers came to a stop with their noses all pointed directly at Owen?s now dead car.
He sighed to himself, since he finally understood the purpose of the ambush.
They didn?t want to kill him. They wanted him alive.
**********Chapter 8***********
One of the creepers had stepped out of his car and was approaching on foot. He was carrying what looked an awful lot like an AK-47. In a last desperate attempt at salvation, Owen picked up his radio and gave one last call out on the emergency channel. ?Hello? Is anyone out there? I could really use some assistance out here? aww, screw it.? He knew that even if someone could hear him, they?d never be able to reach him in time.
Much to his surprise, he actually got a reply this time. ?Reading you loud and clear Owen, help is on the way.?
Owen was speechless for a second, since was wasn?t expecting anything but static. ?It?s about time someone answered? not like it matters now.? He realized that he didn?t recognize the voice, yet there was something familiar about it. ? Who the hell is this anyway??
?This is your guardian angel. ETA two minutes. Can you hold out until then??
Owen quickly scanned the brightening horizon to look for any sign of the promised help. To the North, West, and South there was nothing. No approaching cars, no tell-tale dust cloud, nothing. To the East was the several hundred foot cliff and the blinding light of a steadily rising sun. Even if he could see anything in that direction, it didn?t matter. There was no way anyone down there could help him now. He replied back into the radio. ?Umm, okay. Thanks for nothing??
He let the radio drop to the floor just as the creeper stepped up to his door with the muzzle of the gun pointed at his face.
?Out of the car, NOW!?
Owen thought of making a stand with his trusty pistol, but even if he could take out the guy holding the machine gun, he wouldn?t stand a chance on foot against the two fully armed cars. He paused, trying to take as much time as possible without making it look intentional, then slowly opened the door and stepped out with his hands in the air.
?Okay, what the hell do you want with me??
?We want the girl. Where is she??
?As you can clearly see, she isn?t here with me, you fuckin??? his reply was cut short when the butt of the AK-47 smashed into his stomach, dropping him to his knees.
?Where is the girl!? I?m not going to ask again!?
?I?m not going to tell you a damn thing, so might as well just shoot me.? Owen gasped, still holding his stomach.
?All in good time, Mr. Owen, all in good time. I can?t kill you yet, at least not until we decide you?ve outlived your usefulness.? The creeper grabbed Owen?s shoulder, dragged him to his feet, and motioned towards a dirty silver Sovereign. The driver of the car hit a button and the trunk opened.
Owen dropped to the ground, pretending to be more injured than he really was. He looked around and still saw no sign of any help. Whoever that had been on the radio must have been just playing with him. The promised two minutes were almost up and there was no sign of any help. He was just starting to climb back to his feet when he noticed a most peculiar sound. It was deep, powerful rumble, that could only be made by a massive engine running wide open. And there was more than one. The creeper with the gun noticed it as well and began hurriedly searching for the source.
What happened next occurred in an instant, but to Owen it all seemed to happen in slow motion.
There was a loud double blip sound as something nearby lit up the radar screens in two of the creeper?s cars. Almost immediately it was followed by the distinct whistling sound of machine gun shells passing dangerously close. Both of the cars with creepers inside erupted into fireballs and a large black shadow passed them at high speed. A tremendous blast of warm air blew Owen and the creeper off their feet, as a massive twin-engined aircraft screamed past with a deafening roar less than 20 feet overhead.
The creeper made a break for his car, and Owen braced himself as the plane gracefully curved back for a second pass. A split-second burst from the nose guns was all it took to obliterate the remaining creeper and his car. The engines of the plane quickly dropped in pitch as it throttled back, and Owen stood in place with his jaw dropped as it slowed and came in for a landing nearby.
Whomever was piloting that thing had executed a lightning fast, pin-point accurate attack. And by diving in with the sun to his back, there was no way they could have seen him until it was too late.
Guardian angel indeed.
But that still didn?t explain who it was, or why he was here.
*************Chapter 9***************
The plane taxied up to a position near the flaming wreckage and turned a full 180 degrees as if lining up for a quick takeoff. The engines died down to calm idle, and the canopy slid open.
The pilot stood up and yelled, ?Quickly Owen, grab anything you need out of your car and get onboard before their backup arrives. They were only about 10 miles away.?
Owen hesitated, but since there didn?t seem to be any alternative he walked over to his pink Pan-Am to grab his gun and few other small personal items. He patted the ruined car on the hood and, suppressing a tear, he whispered, ?I?m going to miss you old girl. We had a great run??
He turned away from his mistress and quickly walked towards the plane and it?s patiently waiting pilot. When he got closer, the only markings he could make out on the slate-gray skin were some very faint USAAF markings that had been painted over, and the face of a beautiful red-haired woman on the side of the nose. He was about to ask how to get up to the cockpit when a metal ladder extended out of a slot in the wing behind the cockpit. Owen carefully climbed the ladder and glanced back as it retracted back into the wing.
He said to the pilot who was standing quietly on the wing, ?So, who are you??
The pilot removed his helmet, dropped it onto the seat, and extended his hand. ?Good to see you again, Owen. It?s been too long.?
Owen?s jaw dropped again when he recognized the face of a vigilante he hadn?t seen since the events in Las Vegas. It was Fnork. His hesitation vanished and he accepted the handshake immediately.
?Well I?ll be damned? you?re the last person I ever expected to see around here again,? he said with a huge grin. ?Good to see you again.?
Remembering that they didn?t have much time remaining, he quickly lowered himself into the space directly behind the pilot?s seat and watched as Fnork put his helmet back on, climbed into his own seat, and closed the canopy.
Fnork glanced back at Owen and said, ?Hang on!? Almost immediately the engines revved back up to speed with a roar, and the plane began to accelerate across the barren expanse. Owen was pressed hard into the back of the cockpit, and within seconds they were in the air and grabbing altitude fast. Owen looked out towards the ground and saw a cloud of dust moving towards the battle scene. He wished he could see the looks on the faces of those creepers when they found their all of their allies dead, and he was nowhere to be found. He watched as they slowly faded away into the distance behind.
Once he was sure they were safely away, he turned his attention back to the plane and the pilot whom he hadn?t seen in several years. He couldn?t help but admire the new set of ?wheels? Fnork was driving. The only other time he?d ever seen a plane like this one was in a war museum when he was just a kid?
Fnork must have known what he was thinking, because he glanced back to fill Owen in on the details.
?It?s a Lockhart F-38 Reaper, K-model. When the F-51 Palominos failed miserably against the Luftwaffe, the Army put all their interest back into the ?38?s that were dominating the Pacific. The K-model was the final variant that went into production, but only a few hundred were built before the war ended. Real shame they didn?t get them sooner, because the only thing that could catch one was a Messernacht 262, and those didn?t stand a chance in a dogfight. I got my hands on this one a few years ago for a real good price. It?s such a fine aircraft that it barely needed any modifications at all. All I really added was this small radar screen and a few other odds and ends. The armament is still exactly the same as it was in the war: four .50?s and a 20mm, all right on the tip of the nose.?
?Nice?? was Owen?s only response, because he was still in awe of everything that had just happened. His car was already forgotten, and now he was wishing he knew how to fly.
?Well, what do you say we find some place to put down and meet up with the others??
?Sounds good to me,? Owen replied ?Say, there?s a small airfield about three miles away from where we?re hiding out. That would probably be a good place to stash your plane for a while.? He pointed to the Northwest, where a small town was coming into view. Fnork nodded and rolled the F-38 slightly to the right to point towards the town.
*********Chapter 10***********
Once they were safely back on the ground, and Owen finished admiring the airplane, he found a phone to give Redline Fox a call. He was still so excited about what had just happened that it took several minutes of storytelling before he finally got the message through that he needed to be picked up at the airport. Twenty minutes later Redline pulled up in his Piranha, and the big black van following parked alongside.
Fnork and Redline Fox immediately greeted each other like they were old friends, but when Snake was introduced the handshake lasted only seconds, as they both eyed each other suspiciously. They had never met in person before, but both had heard plenty of rumors about the other. Snake had a particularly shady past, but he always said that was behind him. On the other hand, very little was known about Fnork?s past at all, but everything Snake had heard told him that it was much safer being with him than against him.
After the greetings were finished and Fnork was satisfied that his plane was secured, they headed back to the vehicles. Owen was climbing into the passenger seat of the van, and had already started telling Snake about what had happened since he left the hideout that morning. When the other two got to the Piranha, Jade was watching them intently from the back seat.
Once they were in the car and rolling again, Redline began relating to Fnork everything that had happened since his trip to Dante?s, and how Jade had come under his protection. Fnork didn?t respond at all until Redline was completely finished with his tale, at which point he said, ?There?s more going on here than it appears. Once everyone is settled back in your hideout, I?m going to head out to look around for some more clues to what is happening.?
?That?s a good idea, since none of those creepers will know you?re back, and won?t be watching for you,? Redline Fox replied.
?Owen?s car is wrecked, so I?ll take him to get a new one.?
A few minutes later they pulled into the hideout, where Owen once again started telling everyone about what happened to him that morning. Fnork noticed that this time around, there were a lot more creepers giving chase, and several other details had been exaggerated as well. He gave a small grin, but listened silently with the others. Halfway through the story, Redline was distracted by Jade tugging on his sleeve. She had a concerned look on her face, and her knees were pressed tightly together. He knew immediately what this meant, and led her off to the bathroom. They returned just as Owen finished the story.
Before he could start it over again, Redline interjected and said that they needed to discuss plans for what to do next. They agreed that Owen would go with Fnork for a few days to get a new car, while Redline and Snake would stay behind with Jade to find what information they could in the surrounding area. They would also try to get more information from Jade herself. So far she hadn?t provided anything new, though they could tell she was still hiding something.
They all took a day to rest, and to make preparations for the next few days. Early the following morning, Snake started up his van to take Fnork and Owen back to the airport, while Jade stayed behind with Redline Fox to tidy up the hideout a bit. Redline said they were going to head back to Dante?s later to see if he had heard any new rumors. He?d have to be careful though, in case any creepers were still in the area.