Payback

“Leave that red kid alone.” Growls an elderly man who’s still imposing despite his hunched stature.

“You’re going to pay for destroying Emiyeh’s house.” Threatens a tall, bearded father.

“...and hurting Mint!” Yells an angry 12-year-old girl with dirty blonde hair in double braids.

“How about you get out of our way before we hurt you.” Says the same, husky voice. It belongs to a burly, brown haired man with honest eyes and hands smeared with motor grease.

His arms are folded across his chest. A wrench peeks out from under one in a silent threat. Douglas’s eyes widen.

He angles his body towards them and stands tall, trying to regain control. “Go back to your homes! All of you!”

The crowd ignores him, closing in. Douglas whips his head back and forth as he’s overwhelmed by the faces of many unhappy villagers. He backs away, moving further from both Emiyeh’s patio and Asa.

He scans for an opening and spots one. It’s perfect for him to escape to the transport. He sprints through.

A man reaches for him and his arms are left empty as he evades them with remarkable agility. Douglas nears the transport. “Brent! Rico! Shepard and Creed, too! Help me deal with this!”

“Yes, sir!” Rico and Brent call from the vehicle. Creed and Shepard run to the forefront, eager to redeem themselves after such a humiliating failure.

The other two had bandaged their injuries and used nanite spray on them. The nanomachines in the chemical mixture can aid the healing process and slow bleeding, but can only treat surface wounds.

Moving deeper within the body would be a huge trek for a microscopic entity and they don’t have the intelligence to diagnose injuries they can’t see. Shepard wields his blade with one hand and Creed is shaky on her feet. The villagers, undeterred by their drawn weapons, start to overwhelm them as well.

Creed slashes at the people in front, managing to drive them back. Shepard does the same, keeping his sword close to his body to avoid seriously maiming anyone. Douglas stumbles backwards, fear evident on his face.

“Rico! Brent! What are you doing? Get over here and help me drive them back!” He orders.

“Uh… Yes, sir!”

They hesitate for a second, then draw their weapons. Rico points the blade at the crowd in warning and Brent pokes at them apprehensively. The villagers aren’t particularly scared by them, but they are staying back to avoid being skewered.

The gaps are covered and the crowd can’t get through for the time being. Until a skinny preteen boy with wild, blond hair tackles Shepard at the waist.

He falls to the ground screaming as his collarbone is wrenched out of place. The pain forces him to drop his weapon and fortunately, the boy isn’t harmed. Creed's eyes dart back and forth as the villagers crowd her.

A well placed blow drives them back a bit, but it’s not enough. When she’s looking away, the burly man smacks her sword arm with his wrench. Her hand lets go in reflex.

A strong kick knocks her legs out from beneath her, sending her toppling to the ground. Before she can resist, a man and a woman have already flipped her on her stomach and pinned her to the ground.

Her abdomen burns as her entire body weight is placed on her wound. Struggling proves to be worthless. The intense pain isn’t worth it and she’s not making much headway anyway. She goes limp, snarling with teeth bared. Shepard is in a similar situation, grimacing as he’s manhandled.

A man grabs Rico’s wrist. He squirms, but can’t get free. Brent is steadily pushed back. “Get back! I’m telling you, get back!” He yells, voice cracking.

His jaw snaps with a hardy punch. He’s knocked to the ground. Baaya stands over him, fist still clenched. “A coward would do well with yapping less.”

⟡

Asa rests against the doorframe with his eyes closed. Mint holds a towel to his wound and cleans his face off with a handkerchief. Emiyeh watches him silently with a worn expression. He opens his eyes.

Mint smiles in relief. “Niklaus.” He speaks softly to not hurt his head. “How are you feeling? You took a long time to respond…”

“I was just resting my eyes.” He says, then stands up and starts to walk away.

Mint reaches his hand out. “Don’t get up! You’re hurt!”

Asa flashes him a smile from over his shoulder. “I feel a lot better. You’re a great healer.”

A pleasant feeling shocks Mint’s heart and he freezes, staring as his mind goes fuzzy. Once he comes back to reality, Asa is gone and all he can see is his back running towards the crowd.

ꕤ

I have to make sure Douglas doesn’t hurt anyone! Who knows what he could do when backed into a corner? Asa thinks as he darts forward.

☼

Douglas’s hand twitches. He reaches for the cannon.

⟡

Asa leaps skillfully over the villagers and gracefully lands in front of Douglas, then draws his sword.

“Stay back!” Douglas yells, pointing the cannon at his chest. A few villagers gasp, and the crowd shrinks backwards.

“You!” He says to Asa. “Drop your weapon.”

Asa complies. His blade hits the grass.

“Good.” Says Douglas with a smile. He steps to the side, eyes trained on Asa and the crowd.

“Don’t move.” He inches closer to the driver’s side door. It opens with a click and he sits in the seat, sitting the cannon on the passenger’s side.

Douglas turns the ignition, and the motor comes to life with a thrum.

“He’s not trying to escape, is he?” Asks the burly man, sounding unimpressed. Asa stays silent, eyes on the vehicle.

For a moment, Douglas does consider escaping, but another idea comes to mind. He steps on the gas.

The engine revs. “Is he planning to drive it into us?” A man asks in disbelief.

The transport hurdles forward with alarming speed. People scream and scramble out of the vehicle’s path. Asa doesn’t move, expression unchanging. Now they’ll have to move out of the way! Douglas thinks, with wide eyes and a manic grin.

Within seconds, it’s meters from the crowd and mere feet from Asa, then inches. He still doesn’t move. Instead, he widens his stance and puts his arms in front of him.

It comes to a sudden stop with a CRASH! The metal of the hood crunches as it pushes into Asa’s palms. The soles of his boots dig into the soil and his muscles strain.

“What?!” Douglas yells. He slams on the gas. The machine struggles, but can’t drive forward. Asa’s forced back a few inches, the dirt crumbling beneath his feet. Mint shoves through the mob, tumbling forward once he’s free.

“Niklaus!” He shouts. Niklaus is… wrestling the transport? And successfully restraining it? Tendrils of steam waft from his arms and back. His face is sweaty and red. His guard is overheating!

Asa grits his teeth and tenses his muscles even harder. The hood smashes under the force of his grip and the windshield cracks. All Douglas can do is gawk helplessly.

He hoists transport above his head, then throws it as far as he can. It bounces off of its grill then flips 180 degrees and bounces off its back bumper, too.

Douglas’s head slams into the wheel and then into the head rest. The transport lands on its wheels. Asa collapses to his knees, panting.

Steam hisses from his armor. The guard glows, then disperses, leaving him in his normal outfit. “Niklaus!” Mint holds his shoulders to help him stay upright.

“Sorry for worrying you.”

“I have to give the nanomachines commands from nearby. I can’t do that if you run off!” He adjusts his beret. “I guess it’s my fault for not telling you…”

Asa smiles softly. “I know how it works.” He says. “It’s not your fault. I made my own choice.”

The transport’s engine revs once again. It drives off into the desert, kicking up dust. The burly man makes a few strides towards it, then turns to Baaya. “Should I get my four wheeler?”

“Just let him go.” She says. “Nothing good will come from chasing a man like that.”

A few men tie up Brent and throw him in the pile with the others. “Please don’t kill me!” He cries.

“We’re not going to kill you.” Says Baaya. “There’s a perfectly good jail we can use.”

The color drains from his face and he gulps. All four of the soldiers' heads sag, the realization that they’ve been abandoned setting in. Baaya approaches Asa, who Mint is supporting with his shoulder.

Her expression is a grateful one. You could even say it’s fond. “I think I owe you and the villagers an explanation.” He says. “Especially since things got so out of hand.”

“That’s true. Save it for later, though.” Mint jumps out of the way as she wraps an arm around Asa’s shoulder. “What do you say to a warm dinner?”

“Oh. Ah. Okay!” He says. It doesn’t seem like he has a choice.

Baaya drags Asa along, a boisterous atmosphere about her. Mint follows after them.

“Don’t be too rough with him! I need to treat his wounds!”

“We will, we will…”