Black Market Merchant

“I don’t know why I want to do this, because this is crazy.” Hanna thought as she ran away. “I know I shouldn’t go out there, I know I don’t know how to fight, and I know I am just a kid. Its just this voice keeps telling me to go and going feels right.”

Hanna could still hear the others calling to her to come back as she ran. However, she refused to look back otherwise she might give up on helping Lisa fight. Hanna wanted to apologize though; they were only doing what was best for her.

Blinking hard to keep a tear from blocking her vision, Hanna looked over her shoulder, “I’m sorry but…”

“Screee!”

Instead of seeing people there was a mangy brown furred face with huge yellow fangs! Hanna let out her own scream as she was confronted by the wounded Logos Cutter that was right behind her. The blood thirsty mutated bunny was only two meters away and gaining! Hanna turned around and started making her little legs go as fast as she could.

The Logos Cutter let out another frightening screech as it lunged out to swipe at her with its long knife-like claws. Hanna could feel them brushing at the back of her as they missed, and that close brush with death was a feeling she didn’t want to ever feel again. Fortunately for her the Logos Cutter had been wounded by a bullet that had penetrated its hind legs. That jump it used to try and catch Hanna was so painful that it knew it couldn’t do that again.

Hanna didn’t look back the entire time she ran for the Mover Mech. All thoughts of the voice in her head were gone now and all she could think about was getting into the safety of the cockpit. She assumed that once she made it to the Mech then all would be alright, well, she was wrong.

As soon as Hanna reached the base of the Mech she realized the ladder was not down and it was still tucked inside the torso. Reaching up and twisting the ladders lock on the Mechs back leg she anxiously looked back at the Logos Cutter. Since the Twisted was wounded and unable to jump, Hanna managed to put some distance between them. The ladder was sliding down at a safe speed but not fast enough and the Logos Cutter had almost caught up.

The ladder landed with a soft thud on the roads pavement just before Hanna started climbing up it. She had only just reached the third rung when the Logos Cutter let out another screech and gave a small hop to slash its claws at her. The swipe caught her jeans pants leg and knocked her off the ladder.

Hanna somehow managed to hang on with her hands. She kicked and flailed around trying to find the ladders rung again. The Logos Cutter let out an annoyed but painful sounding moan as soon as it landed on the ground and sat down hard as its leg wound reopened. Hanna found her footing and resumed climbing.

Her heart ponded and hands were sweaty, but she made it up the ladder safely. Then, just as she grabbed the edge of the cockpit’s entrance, Hanna heard something coming up the ladder behind her. Looking down between her legs she was mortified to see that the Logos Cutter was also climbing the ladder!

Hanna pulled herself into the cockpit just as the Logos Cutter’s claws struck the edge of the entrance. Jumping into the leather seat Hanna looked back to see the sharp fanged face of the Logos Cutter appear in the doorway. A bit of gloopy saliva dripped from the Logos Cutters mouth as it let out an intimidating growl. Hanna pressed the button to close the door, but the Logos Cutter was already climbing inside. There was no way the door would close in time, she was trapped!

Nervously Hanna scooted further back into her seat and that’s when she felt the pistol poke her back. Reaching behind her she pulled the pistol out from her pants and looked at it dumbly. The Twisted’s long claws slipped on the metal as it was climbing inside, and the door started to close on it. However, when the doors sensors felt an obstruction, the system forcibly reopened the door and let the Logos Cutter finish coming in.

The Logos Cutter got fully inside and now only the controls separated them. Snapping out from staring at the gun, Hanna grabbed the pistol with both hands and pointed it at the Logos Cutter. Her hands shook fearfully as she tried to aim at the Twisted who saw the gun and let out a scream, as if daring the little girl to pull the trigger. Hanna squeezed the trigger and closed her eye in anticipation of the blast.

“Click.”

Nothing happened.

Hanna’s stomach did a flip upon realizing the safety was still on!

The Logos Cutter heard the gun’s click and lunged at Hanna with its claws to stab the little girl. Hanna threw herself to one side and the claws penetrated the leather seat where her head once was. Looking down at the pistol Hanna flicked the safety off from black to red, just as she had John do before.

Annoyed the Logos Cutter looked down at Hanna who was now pointing the gun right at itself. Not fearing the gun now, the Logos Cutter went to bite Hanna’s arm!

“Pow!”

The Logos Cutter’s right cheek suddenly blew off as the bullet shattered its jaw. The Logos Cutter reeled back and freed its claws from the leather seat in the process. Hanna sat back up breathing heavily and pointed the pistol at the Logos Cutter once more. The Logos Cutter looked at Hanna crossly and then jumped at her with both sets of claws ready to rip apart the little girl.

“Pow!”

Hanna pulled the trigger once more and the force kicked her hands upwards while still gripping the pistols grip. The Logos Cutter was struck in midair as the bullet lodged into its chest. Falling to the cockpit floor and creature let out a moan. It then staggered upright to look at Hanna with a wild look on its bloody and mangled face.

“Get away from me!” Hanna screamed as she pulled the trigger for the third time.

The Logos Cutter didn’t make a sound as it fell backwards out the cockpit door and to the pavement below. Hanna was staring wide eyed at the entrance while still holding the pistol up at the ready. She was half expecting to see the creature reappear at any moment and dared not look away.

When nothing happened, Hanna didn’t even dare to go check. She just looked down at the gun trembling in her hands and came to the realization that she had just killed a living creature. The adrenaline pumping in her vein’s numbed her to the gravity of the situation, but she still tossed the gun onto the controls in front of herself in disbelief.

The only sound now her labored breathing and the ringing in her ears from the gunshots being fired in the confined metal cockpit. Then, from off in the distance, she heard the baby Hoard Mothers rumbling call. With her hands still shaking, Hanna grabbed the controls and turned the Mech on.

Hanna took a nervous, dry gulp. “I-I am coming Aunt Lisa.”

The electric engine and heat exhaust fans whirred to life as the control panel lit up with its brilliant-colored buttons. The wave of information flooded into her mind once again and immediately she felt relaxed and focused. Looking ahead through the open cockpit door she saw Lisa, Party Badger, and the baby Hoard Mother struggling for control on the cliffs edge.

“Here goes nothing!”

Pressing forwards on both controls the Mover Mech started to walk. After a few steps, Hanna began to make the Mech speed up as fast as she dared. Even over the noise of the Mover Mech Hanna could hear the rumblings from the baby Hoard Mother. She was halfway to where the three were fighting by the cliff when some movement caught her eye. The rest of the Twisted Hoard was coming out from the blue-grey smog to her left and they were right next to her!

Knowing she was still moving fast, and they couldn’t reach her just yet, Hanna didn’t change course and kept her aim steady. From her experience with learning how to balance and move the Mech she knew where to ram into the baby Hoard Mother. The Hoard Mothers back legs.

The Mover Mech was also feeding her the same information. The system was telling Hanna that the cliff was approaching and that there was an unstable structure ahead. This further fueled her to act and ram the legs of the massive Twisted. Pressing the controls to full speed and hitting the Mech’s horn, Hanna braced for impact.

“Ka-thunk!”

The Mover Mech hit the leg of the baby Hoard Mother perfectly. The wide bucket dug into the monsters scaly leg and though it didn’t cut into the scales, the flesh still gave way. This caused the whole leg to get knocked backwards and slide in the sand. The force of the speeding Mech, added to the pressure Party Badger was already putting on it, succeeded in topping the baby Hoard Mother!

“Hanna!” Lisa yelled as she watched the little muddy red headed girl sailing out from the cockpits door.

Hanna was not strapped down by the seat belt and was flung out by the impact! Both she and Hoard Mother were free falling over the edge of the cliff!

Throwing cation to the wind, Lisa took a running jump off from the Hunter Mechs back and at the helpless little girl. Just as she did jump, the cliff also gave out. There was nothing to stop them from falling together now.

However, Lisa raced towards the little girl like a rocket as debris tumbled around them in the air. The bottom of the collapsed cliff struck the dam’s spillway and started to shatter causing large boulders and rocks shoot back up at them. Lisa grabbed the little girl by the hand and pulled her close to her chest to shield her from everything that was about to happen. Lisa tightened her arms and legs around Hanna as they fell helplessly to the bottom of the dam.

They were just about to reach the bottom when Lisa shouted, “Hold your breath!”

There was a loud bang as the world shook around them, only to be instantly followed by pain on all sides, lots of spinning, and then a cold wet darkness. Water flooded and sloshed around them and neither of them could tell which way was up. Hanna felt as if her lungs were about to burst the entire time.

She was about to give up when they broke the rivers muddy surface. Hanna gasped right away and looked frantically about her while pawing at her wet hair that was matted to her face. Lisa was still holding onto her, but she wasn’t looking at her. Instead, Lisa was looking further ahead in the river. Hanna looked that way too and wished she hadn’t.

The baby Hoard Mothers head and neck were rising out from the water. Letting out a defiant roar from both mouths the water rippled violently around the two women. The Twisted was not dead!