|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:14 am
"Well, I gave you your chance," sighed Autry. He turned in the direction of Barton Town. "You go in front, please, so I can keep an eye on you." Apparently he was really, truly, and honestly serious about this. If not, he was certainly willing to go the distance required to make it seem that way.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:17 am
The adult feien gave him a long, cool look, as if measuring him for how serious he was; and then she flew back and up, gaining in height, as if figuring that the only way to avoid him was through taking advantage of the fact that he couldn't fly. Burgundia rarely gave up without a kicking, screaming fight.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:21 am
Autry was ready for that and had his stunner out and firing in milliseconds, his other hand reactivating the feien locator. If she wanted to play it that way he would just see to it that he was there when she came back down. That, or bring her down himself.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:26 am
She had made a steady beeline for a nearby oak tree, scrabbling into the branches; it had been better when she had been in mid-air, as she was more difficult to see, but obviously thought hiding was the best choices. Heart pounding and panicking desperately - she was not good at this! - she made her way around to the other side of the trunk, gasping for breath.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:28 am
Guided by the locator display, Autry circled around the tree himself. "Come on now, Burgundia. You know you can't go anywhere without me finding you. Don't make me have to hurt you." Inside he was really, really hoping he would have to hurt her. Resisting arrest was always such great justification.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:35 am
It was at this point that Burgundia was squawked at.
A blackbird was sitting close to a nest it was building; it clucked at her angrily, seeing that she was tall but nothing near its girth. It snapped its orange beak at her dangerously. (Dee, at this point, decided that no god whatsoever liked her, and that dying from either Autry or a blackbird was punishment for the life she had lived. She should have smoked, and drank copiously, and burped, and become a stripper.)
For the most part of Burgundia, which was thoughtful and cautious, and dignified and cool, she thought: I'll turn myself in.
For the other 1%, which M had irritated, she was white-hot incandescent hellfire rage; movement and woman and furious.
This part saw her jump the blackbird, lock her arms around its neck, and grip its sides tightly as it burst out of the tree like a bat out of hell. It shot up into the air like a feathery black missile, squawking as it went.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:38 am
Autry swore and took off after the bird. To his advantage, it offered a nice black target against the color of the sky. Unfortunately, it was also pretty fast. But he had the locator and he kept straight after Burgundia like an arrow, hurtling over rocks and bushes at breakneck speed.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:42 am
Burgundia sure as hell couldn't control her unlikely steed; she simply held on as fast as she could. The bird, bless it, was in a state of high panic, and swerved around the sky as if it was totally drunk. The flapping of the wings sounded like a chainsaw in Dee's ears: all she could do was hold on and hope for the best.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:45 am
The bird's crazied twisting gave Autry a chance to stop and actually aim. He was so intent on his shot he didn't notice himself mentally offering a prayer to God. He squeezed the trigger.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:48 am
Possibly it was the sheer irony of Autry making any religious-based prayer that did it: he hit the blackbird, and it came tumbling down to earth.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:50 am
With a whoop, Autry ran forward, still mindful to keep the locator running. Just in case.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:51 am
The bird hit the ground in the next field, in the long grass. There was a tiny whump.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:52 am
Autry came to a halt over the bird, stunner pointing down. "Alright, love, I hope you're happy."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 1:56 am
Burgundia was already trying to drag herself away, groggy, only half-hit by the stunner; she was too struck to really move, and both her legs were broken from the fall. That could easily be repaired back at the HQ. Nonetheless, she was doing her best to climb into a hay-tick.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 2:22 am
Autry recompressed the stunner and went for the stasis field. He was probably going to get in trouble. This was going to be a tough one to explain, even with the vids to prove he'd given her fair chance.
The time for wordplay was over. Autry knelt down beside Burgundia. A click activated the field in the dimensions he wanted. He watched dispassionately as Burgundia froze in place. It was probably for the best: the biostatis field had the added benefit of protecting her wounds. (Self-inflicted, Autry would happily say when asked.) He lifted the field generator and Burgundia rose with it.
Autry considered the frozen fairy. She looked like she might need medical attention. Since he was no doctor, though, he could be forgiven for not knowing that. A devilish grin spread across his face.
He really should take her in to Central and try to weasel some reward out of this situation. Maybe get assigned to a more interesting post. But the biostasis field for a feien was so small. It looked like he could probably get the whole thing recompressed, field and all.
Living matter was not meant to be compressed, but in stasis, living matter was effectively dead, frozen in a temporal field. And dead matter you could compress quite easily. Autry hesitated just a moment, wondering if he should really risk something that could potentially kill this feien. Then he shrugged and hit the compression button.
To his delight, it compressed and he was left holding a circle the size of a large button. Autry peered closely for any sign of damage, but the unit seemed good. He clipped it back onto his belt, patting it twice.
A rustle on the ground attracted his attention. The blackbird, recovering from being stunned. Autry looked at the creature. Then he brought the heel of his shoe down on its head.
((Dear Burgundia, please note the fact that your player would have had you bite off your own finger. I have saved you from losing a digit. It probably would not have been replaced. Aren't you glad?))
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
