don’t have the
weaponry…’
Aneka fired into the room. It
was a calculated risk, but she figured they had their hostages up
on the second floor where it would be harder to escape. There were
several shouts, a cry of pain.
‘This is an anti-proton blaster,
built by the Xinti. I don’t know whether Manu Dei mentioned them,
but they were damned good at building weapons.’
‘It’s an estimation,’ Al said,
‘but the Enforcer is probably on the left side of the room.’
‘I’ll take your estimation over
anyone else’s facts.’ She fired again, blasting out the window on
the left side and then launching two more rounds in through the new
hole. Twin explosions rocked the room inside. ‘Come out,’ Aneka
yelled. ‘Hands in the air. Or else.’ It sounded really bad once she
had said it, but there was no turning back now.
Besides, it worked. A few
seconds later the ogres, followed by a dazed-looking Enforcer,
walked out of the building, unarmed and with their hands raised.
Aneka backed away slowly, covering them with her weapons as they
went.
‘I’m receiving a transmission
from a Prime City aircraft,’ Al said. ‘It’s Councillor Marsden
requesting coordinates.’
‘Marsden? Okay, well, better
late than never. Send them the coordinates and put her through.’
Marsden’s face appeared in a window in Aneka’s vision field. She
looked rather tense. ‘Councillor, I didn’t know you actually had any aircraft.’
‘We don’t,’ Marsden replied,
‘exactly. This was an experimental anti-gravity transport we
developed. I’m not qualified to fly it, but neither is anyone else.
I take it from your composed demeanour that you’ve resolved the
situation without us.’
‘I wouldn’t quite put it that
way. I was really not sure what I was going to do with seven ogres
and an Enforcer, to be honest. Your Citizens likely need medical
help.’
‘We’re en route. We’ll be there
in… two minutes if I can keep this thing in the air that long.’
‘Good,’ Aneka replied, ‘but I’m
driving back.’
~~~
Ella dismissed the text she was reading
in-vision and turned toward the porch door as she heard the outer
one open. She told herself, firmly, that she was expecting Abigail
to walk in, but her breathing stopped anyway as she waited. When
the porch door finally opened a tiny, strangled sob escaped her
anyway.
‘Not quite the greeting I was
expecting,’ Aneka said. She started taking her rifle off her back,
looking quizzically at Ella.
‘I wasn’t sure you were coming
back.’
‘What?’ The rifle was placed on
the floor and she followed it with her gun belts.
‘You were really angry, and you
were right to be, and I made Abigail feel terrible, though I
think that’s sorted out now, and you said I cheated on you, and I
sort of did because I knew it was wrong and you wouldn’t approve
and I did it anyway and…’ She had to stop to draw breath which gave
Aneka a point to get in.
‘You talked to Abigail?’
Ella nodded, her eyes fixed on
Aneka. ‘She came over to tidy, would you believe, and I talked to
her, and she was feeling guilty for enjoying the sex, and I told
her she had no reason to feel guilty, and she seemed to accept that
even if she didn’t think she should have done it, and we talked and
I think we kind of made up a bit, and then she went and I’ve been
waiting and you didn’t come back and I didn’t know where you were
and…’
Dumping her jacket, Aneka sat
down beside Ella and grabbed her shoulders. ‘Please, Ella, stop for
breath. Yes, I was angry with you. Yes, you screwed up. But it
sounds like you’ve apologised properly to Abigail and I know you wouldn’t have done it if my twin hadn’t fucked you over in the
first place.’
‘Yes, but…’
‘No buts. I forgive you. I
certainly wasn’t going to leave you, you little idiot.’ Ella let
out an incoherent little sobbing sound and Aneka pulled her into a
tight hug. ‘Of course, it’s no sex for a month and
weaponry…’
Aneka fired into the room. It
was a calculated risk, but she figured they had their hostages up
on the second floor where it would be harder to escape. There were
several shouts, a cry of pain.
‘This is an anti-proton blaster,
built by the Xinti. I don’t know whether Manu Dei mentioned them,
but they were damned good at building weapons.’
‘It’s an estimation,’ Al said,
‘but the Enforcer is probably on the left side of the room.’
‘I’ll take your estimation over
anyone else’s facts.’ She fired again, blasting out the window on
the left side and then launching two more rounds in through the new
hole. Twin explosions rocked the room inside. ‘Come out,’ Aneka
yelled. ‘Hands in the air. Or else.’ It sounded really bad once she
had said it, but there was no turning back now.
Besides, it worked. A few
seconds later the ogres, followed by a dazed-looking Enforcer,
walked out of the building, unarmed and with their hands raised.
Aneka backed away slowly, covering them with her weapons as they
went.
‘I’m receiving a transmission
from a Prime City aircraft,’ Al said. ‘It’s Councillor Marsden
requesting coordinates.’
‘Marsden? Okay, well, better
late than never. Send them the coordinates and put her through.’
Marsden’s face appeared in a window in Aneka’s vision field. She
looked rather tense. ‘Councillor, I didn’t know you actually had any aircraft.’
‘We don’t,’ Marsden replied,
‘exactly. This was an experimental anti-gravity transport we
developed. I’m not qualified to fly it, but neither is anyone else.
I take it from your composed demeanour that you’ve resolved the
situation without us.’
‘I wouldn’t quite put it that
way. I was really not sure what I was going to do with seven ogres
and an Enforcer, to be honest. Your Citizens likely need medical
help.’
‘We’re en route. We’ll be there
in… two minutes if I can keep this thing in the air that long.’
‘Good,’ Aneka replied, ‘but I’m
driving back.’
~~~
Ella dismissed the text she was reading
in-vision and turned toward the porch door as she heard the outer
one open. She told herself, firmly, that she was expecting Abigail
to walk in, but her breathing stopped anyway as she waited. When
the porch door finally opened a tiny, strangled sob escaped her
anyway.
‘Not quite the greeting I was
expecting,’ Aneka said. She started taking her rifle off her back,
looking quizzically at Ella.
‘I wasn’t sure you were coming
back.’
‘What?’ The rifle was placed on
the floor and she followed it with her gun belts.
‘You were really angry, and you
were right to be, and I made Abigail feel terrible, though I
think that’s sorted out now, and you said I cheated on you, and I
sort of did because I knew it was wrong and you wouldn’t approve
and I did it anyway and…’ She had to stop to draw breath which gave
Aneka a point to get in.
‘You talked to Abigail?’
Ella nodded, her eyes fixed on
Aneka. ‘She came over to tidy, would you believe, and I talked to
her, and she was feeling guilty for enjoying the sex, and I told
her she had no reason to feel guilty, and she seemed to accept that
even if she didn’t think she should have done it, and we talked and
I think we kind of made up a bit, and then she went and I’ve been
waiting and you didn’t come back and I didn’t know where you were
and…’
Dumping her jacket, Aneka sat
down beside Ella and grabbed her shoulders. ‘Please, Ella, stop for
breath. Yes, I was angry with you. Yes, you screwed up. But it
sounds like you’ve apologised properly to Abigail and I know you wouldn’t have done it if my twin hadn’t fucked you over in the
first place.’
‘Yes, but…’
‘No buts. I forgive you. I
certainly wasn’t going to leave you, you little idiot.’ Ella let
out an incoherent little sobbing sound and Aneka pulled her into a
tight hug. ‘Of course, it’s no sex for a month and
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