Chapter 1
Run!
The moons shone high overhead, their multicolored orbs casting an eerie glow over the comatose town. A thin form moved between the shadows, ducking and dodging obstacles in her flight.
Run! her mind screamed again, the noxious stench of stale booze attacking her from behind. Her predator was still close on her heels, in spite of her attempts to throw him off. She cut into another alley, one shrouded in shadow and filled with debris. Ahead, a rotting fence barred the way. She slipped through a narrow space between the boards and cast a glance back. The bloodshot eyes of her stalker glinted in the low light, and her breath caught in her mouth. Hopefully the fence would slow him down.
But it wasn’t enough. The man paused only long enough to curse before he tried scaling the rotting barrier. He heaved himself over the top, crashing into garbage cans on the other side. Another curse, and the pursuit resumed.
She knew he wouldn’t stop. He’d never stop. Not until he got what he wanted. Her eyes started to moisten in fear, but she clenched her jaw and forced them aside. No time for emotion, she thought. Now is the time for survival. How the heck am I gonna get out of this?
As she ran, she waited for an answer. Nothing came. Even her mind was silent. She was alone in her struggle. Completely, utterly alone.
Another sharp turn and she faced a deserted backstreet. Sighing with relief, she had reached her destination. A lonely door waited at the end of the street, the door leading to her sanctuary: the brothel. If she could only make it that far, she would be able to hide until morning. Then she could get out of this mess.
The door was so close, only about five yarz away. She could make it in a quick sprint. Glancing behind her, she strained her eyes for the drunk’s lumbering body. If she stalled any longer, he would certainly catch up to her. Tiny scuffling noises pricked at her ears. She turned back towards the door, breaths shallowing with panic. Five middle-aged men emerged from the darkness of the side alleys, their inebriated faces greedy and drooling.
Dammit! she screamed to herself. His friends! I forgot about his friends! Men like him always travel in packs. As the men swaggered in to block her escape, she wheeled around to flee. One step, and she froze. The stalker appeared, his swagger oozing victory. She tried to duck between him and a dumpster, but he caught her arm.
“Wher’ ya goin’ me pretty?” he drawled, his tongue thick with beer.
“Let go of me!” Her hand lashed out, nails drawn and bloodthirsty.
He just seized her hand in his meaty paw and squeezed. She whimpered, and he flung her back against the wall. His friends encircled her, tongues hanging out in wolfish lust. She pressed hard against the adobe wall, willing it to yield, to give her the protection she needed so desperately right now. A scream waited in her mouth, yearning to be voiced, but she stifled it. Screaming would do no good. No one would listen. No one would choose to listen. And it would only fuel their fires.
They pressed in closer, and their thoughts began to flood into her mind. Against her will they poured in, louder and louder as the men got closer. Pressure built up, exploding into a mental cacophony. She covered her head from the fierce pain, and cringed as the drunks’ barking laughter stabbed at her ears.
The leader placed his thick finger under her chin, tilting her face up to him. Under the depths of his ragged beard, a sneer curled his lip. “Wha’s the matter, me dearie? You afraid?” he spat. “Trus’ me, you hav no reas’n.”
Tears stung at her eyes as she read his thoughts. This close, she couldn’t help it, couldn’t stop the horrible images as they bled into her mental eyes. She tried to close the link, but the booze on his breath stifled everything but a gag. There was no escape for her. No hope. Nothing. Nothing awaited her on the other side of this pain. Tears burst out as the drunk pinned her against the wall and forced his fat lips over her mouth.
No! she screamed helplessly into her mind. Please, no! From the corner of her vision, she could see his friends stretching their hands out, like greedy children reaching for candy. For her.
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NOOOOOOOO!
Knives jerked awake and sat upright in his bed; his body completely coated in sweat. Cold night air attacked his wet torso, sending shivers up his spine. The shriek echoed through his cavernous mind, reverberating against his thoughts. His glazed eyes tried to focus on his surroundings, attempting to recall exactly where he was. As he drifted through a foggy and disoriented mind, vague memories started to clear. The fight with his brother, five bullets ripping through his perfect flesh, and…the insurance girls. Everything slammed back into position with a torturous thunk. Those sickening humans. So painfully nice to him. Especially the big one. At least the short one had a temper he could toy with. The girls had even rented a house so he could heal in peace. Peace! Hmph! He would only find peace when all of humanity was destroyed. If he only had his gun, he would—
His vision shot red as pain seared through his lower abdomen. Screams poured into his mind and he felt as if his body was being ripped apart from the inside out. Doubling over, he clutched his stomach and grit his teeth against the torture. If he was suffering this much…he didn’t want to imagine the absolute hell she must be going through.
Pressure swelled within him and his eyes began to burn blue with electric fire. He shot a glare across the bedroom to his brother. Vash was sound asleep, blissfully happy as his body lay sprawled across the small bed. Gentle snores rose from a gaping mouth while a thin trail of babyish drool leaked down his cheek onto the pillow. Idiot! Knives thought. If you hadn’t shot me so full of holes, she wouldn’t be in this situation! If you hadn’t taken me to the other side of the planet, this wouldn’t have happened! Rage burned hard against his brother and he quelled the fire in his eyes, only to have it resurface in his soul. Curse you, Vash! Curse you and your useless sentimentalism! Your beloved humans are doing this to her, just as—
He winced at the recollection. He couldn’t even think the words.
Tien… At the thought of the girl, the pain began to subside as the telepathic link closed. Not even a month had passed since the fight, and his injuries were not yet fully healed. He hadn’t even tried walking around the house yet. But he had to go. His duties and responsibilities demanded it. She demanded it. He threw off the bed sheets and rose to his feet. At least the wounds to his legs didn’t throb. Much. The short one always has painkillers hidden somewhere… Seeing nothing in the bedroom, he stumbled into the bathroom and checked the medicine cabinet. His temples already pulsed fiercely so he reached for the first bottle he saw. He shook it, heard the dull rattle of a full bottle, and forced a pill down his throat. Hopefully, Vash had taught the human enough to have medicine with minimal side effects on their kind.
The pills took effect quickly, and his concentration cleared. He grabbed as many bandages, dressings, and medical supplies as he could find and stuffed them in a duffel, then returned to the bedroom for clothing. Once the bag was full, he slung it over his shoulder and headed out. Pausing at the bedroom door, he cast a final sneer to his brother, and was gone.
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Light from the twin suns gently floated through the open window, the rays warmly caressing Vash’s scruffy cheek. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and he inhaled the wonderfully fresh air of morning. Eyes still closed to retain the last vestiges of sleep, he sat up and cracked his protesting vertebrae back into proper alignment. He stretched his stiffened limbs and let out a yawn loud enough to shake the house’s foundations.
“Oh boy! It sure is a great morning! Isn’t it, Kni—” He froze. The empty bed across from him was not what he wanted to see. Glancing around, something caught his attention. Or rather, the lack of something. Yesterday he’d propped his vertical duffel against the bedroom door, beside his bed. But now that space was vacant. His eyes narrowed. Don’t you dare do this to me, Knives.
“Mr. Vash!” called Milly from the hallway. At least he didn’t do anything to the girls, Vash breathed. He jumped out of bed and started to dress just as Milly reached the bedroom.
She stopped in the doorway, her sky-blue eyes watching him. “Breakfast is on the table, and Meryl got up really early to make you some donuts—”
“I don’t have time!” he snapped, tugging up his pants as he pushed past her tall form to the bathroom.
“No time for donuts?” He had never refused donuts before. His favorite food on all of Gunsmoke, and no time? “What’s wrong?”
“I haf ta go” he replied, the toothbrush mumbling his words. “Knihs ich gon. Can you han’ me my hurt?”
“Hey, what’s going on here?” Vash and Milly turned to see Meryl eyeing them suspiciously, every ich of her five-feel-something frame oozing a cook’s annoyance. Her short ebony hair was streaked with flour and bits of food were splashed all over her apron and white dress. “Breakfast is getting cold, and you’d better appreciate it!”
“Mr. Knives is gone,” Milly said as she gave Vash a shirt.
“What?!” responded the shorter woman. “Well, he couldn’t have gotten far. He’s not healed enough yet.”
“E’s gon. And e ook ma ag,” muttered Vash, furiously scrubbing his teeth.
Meryl glared at him. “Spit.” He obeyed, and she continued calmly, “Now, what were you saying?”
“I said he’s gone, and he took my bag. He’s planning on pretty heavy travel. And,” he pointed to the door of the medicine cabinet. “He took one of your pill bottles.”
Meryl’s grey eyes flew wide. “What!” she exclaimed as she threw open the cabinet door. Her eyes twitched strangely as she stared at the blank space on the shelf. “He took my Pimdo?”
Milly started to giggle as the anger in Vash’s face turned to confusion. “What’s that?” he asked.
The short woman slammed the cabinet door shut and shot him a look of pure fury. “Something you should never be taking,” she barked. “Now let’s go find your idiot brother.”
“Well,” said Vash, heading down the hall to the living room. “Like you said, he couldn’t have gotten far. Unless he took the…” His mouth gaped open as he looked out the front window. “Car,” he whimpered. Last night, the car had been parked right in front of the house, and now, his fuzzy dice lay half-covered in sand right between two tire marks.
Vash’s and Meryl’s faces dropped. “Great. Just great,” moaned Meryl through gritted teeth.
“Yeah. He still couldn’t have gotten too far,” Milly smiled.
Meryl turned around, wondering if her coworker’s dark blonde hair was rooted in her brain. “What are you talking about? He took the car.”
“But the tank was almost empty. I forgot to refill it yesterday.”
“Oh Milly! You’re a genius!” said Vash.
“That’s what my big big brother used to say.”
“Vash,” interrupted Meryl. “Knives would have filled the tank on his way out of town.”
“But at least I have a place to start.” A big dopey grin settled on his features as he took a step toward the door.
“Hold it right there mister,” ordered the short woman, putting her hand on his chest to stop him. “The last time you walked out that door you had me worried sick for a week. I’m going with you.”
“You can’t! It’s too dangerous.”
“Oh, and this is coming from a spiky-headed, donut-gorging, pacifistic-gunfighting, womanizing plant boy with the dubious title of ‘mankind’s first localized disaster.’ If I can be around you as long as I have and not be killed, hurt, or maimed, I think I can handle a genocidal maniac like Knives. Milly, see if you can get us a ride. Vash, finish getting dressed and eat your breakfast. I’m gonna go pack.” With that, she huffed down the hall to her room.
Vash’s eyes watched her receding back. “What just happened?”
Milly smiled. “She’s going with you.”
