Gauntlet - Episode 26.

Episode 26 – Flee You Flea

Dyzon Naez watched in shock as two members of his criminal crew fell before this deadly drifter. It had all happened so fast, one second he was enjoying the impending end to this silly stranger – and then suddenly shots rang out. How had he drawn on them so fast, let alone got any shots off before them? Who was this man that they were dealing with?

Realization ravaged his insides as a fear began to snake its way up from somewhere deep within him. This was indeed the self-proclaimed hero of Redemption, the man who called himself Gauntlet. On this side of those pointed pistols, Dyzon found himself understanding just how easily Eris could have been overcome by a single Samaritan.

The weight of his own weapon hanging loose in his hand felt ten times heavier than he knew it to be. It brought his attention back until his focus landed on the simple understanding that relics or not – two terrifying revolvers were trained on him. Any move he made now to attack would certainly be interrupted by impending death. There wouldn’t even be the need for this avenging angel to draw at all. A quick squeeze or two and he would be waking up as worm food.

“Caess,” Dyzon tried desperately to keep from showing how scared he was. No matter how dire the situation or how bad the hand he held was he refused to let this Gauntlet guy see him shake. “Now would be a good time for you to be doing something,” he confessed.

The keen minded Kry-Santhian had already been analyzing the situation as it unfolded, considering a complex array of options. His grip still on his deadly little device he immediately had assessed its state only to discover his concerns confirmed. The improvised invention had sucked far more power from its power supply than he had estimated. If only he had had more time to tinker on it, Caess considered. Perhaps it was the direct way he wired the circuit pathways, or maybe the resonating tank had failed to filter the frequency and… This wasn’t the time to troubleshoot his tinkered tech; Caess decided and reined in his train of thought immediately.

“I am doing something,” the stocky stone skinned scavenger admitted without any attempt to mask the urgency he was feeling. “The smart thing to do right now is try to make for a tactical retreat and hope to avoid getting shot in the back! I suggest you do the same, unless you feel obligated to find out if Wynt and Briscole are waiting for you before they shuffle along.”

Dyzon tried his best to study the man still standing in the same spot where he had shown up at. For all his effort he couldn’t read him at all, he had made no move towards him. This silent sentinel just stood there like a statue with his guns at the ready. Would he show mercy if they fled? Or did a bullet in the back await him as soon as he provided the opportunity?

The idea of running from anyone was tantamount to declaring himself a coward – or worse; Eris’s equal. Both things sickened Dyzon as they crossed his mind. And what of his reputation among the people of Redemption, what of the image everyone had come to expect from the Bloody Bachelor?

This was surely a sign of weakness if ever there was one. And after a similar showing from Dizcords Daemons, there was little to keep the town from turning against them. Even with Arbiter on their side or the Mayor to spin things this could easily spell the end to the way things had been for them.

Taurus would no doubt hold him personally responsible. That fact was inevitable and left him little option; he could either die here and now or take his chances running. If he ran he might live long enough to rectify the situation by finding a way to take out this Gauntlet character. And even then once the Red Bull received word he would be as good as anyone else occupying a grave. There would be no where to hide or any way to outrun his reach.

“Time to roll the dice,” Dyzon declared through gritted teeth. Caess had had enough good sense to slowly reposition himself behind the driver’s seat and await his peer’s move before he himself did anything. It would simply have been better odds to floor it and save his own hide if Dyzon had chosen to take his chances in a gunfight.

The Bloody Bachelor swallowed hard to push his wounded pride down and out of the way. It still turned in his stomach as he moved ever so delicately to grab at the roller’s rail cage doorway. Each second felt like forever as he listened intently for any sound that might foretell his fate. But nothing came right up to the moment his rear rested against the passenger’s seat.

“Flee you flea,” Dyzon demanded instantly. The words had barely formed and managed to make their way past his tongue when Caess had already slammed the accelerator as far down as it could go. The two disappeared in a trailing cloud of dust until the lingering twilight swallowed them up.

“Looks like we’re all going to be on the hook for this,” Dyzon said coldly. “Either we remove this thorny threat or we face the Red Bull’s wrath right alongside Eris and them.” Caess drove in silence as he considered just how desperate Dyzon would have to be to even consider joining forces with a female let alone someone he deemed a rival. “Make contact with Dizcords Daemons, I know you have some idea of how to reach them, and set up a meeting.”

Only the humming sound of the roller’s engine could be heard against the night as they drove on.  Neither man dared risk a glance behind them, nor would they talk further presently. They had just witnessed a man they thought to be little more than a joke gun down two of their crew in the blink of an eye only to allow them to run without so much as a warning shot. As frightening as fighting this Gauntlet again was, they both found themselves hoping they had time before news could travel to Adrian Taurus. Time enough for them to attempt to fix everything, or if they were lucky die trying.