Shifting Sands -- The Lone Wolf And The Goddess
Part Two
written by Valegra authored
by D. Briganti
Sidney Meyers rose
majestically into the air, catching the overstuffed punching bag, hanging from
one of the highest branches of one of the tall deciduous trees circling his
cottage, with his knee. Not stopping with that, shifting lightning-fast he
executed a tight back flip mid-air stretching out his left leg in an attempt to
connect with the bag a second time, only to miss his intended target and fall
flat on his back proving without a doubt that the rough rock covered ground was
definitely not his friend.
Rising onto his elbows
scrapping the skin there but not really caring, he looked up at the thick black
bag and swore. "Damnit if that thing isn't laughing at me," he
muttered mugging the offensive object. "I've been working that flying
one-two for the better part of the last two years and I still can't get it
right. Hell, I used to be able to pull that off blindfolded." What the
hell am I doing wrong now?
Disgruntled and still
mumbling, Sid stood up dusting off the dirt and brush from the seat of his
jeans. Not bothering with the dirt partially covering the face of his Iron
Maiden T-shirt, he stepped away from the tree and headed in the direction of
the lake behind his house. Sid couldn't remember a time when he wasn't content
to stand around and bask in his surroundings. The sun rising from the east
bathed the land around him in splendid shades of green and gold. With nothing
but the mountains as a back drop, the valley was a bold splash of fresh beauty.
Sidney kneeled next to the edge of the lake and splashed a hand full of water
on his sweat covered brow. Along with the valley's beauty, Sid enjoyed the
silence and serenity of his home. There wasn't another person within miles of
his cottage. He rarely traveled into the town some miles off to his south
having almost everything he needed packed into his basement. And what wasn't he
tended to grow in his small garden on the opposite side of the lake.
When he wasn't enjoying his
solitude, admiring the scenery, or gardening, he tended to spend most of his
time working on some old moves he hadn't used in a very long time. He'd been in
the valley with his own company and occasionally the company of a wild animal
for the past seven years. In all that time he never considered that he'd begin
to miss certain aspects of city life. He didn't consider that he would miss the
hustle and bustle and rushing to and fro that was part and parcel when living
in the big city. He didn't consider that he would miss the congestion from
heavy traffic. He didn't consider that he would miss the occasional bar brawl.
He didn't consider that he would miss rushing a guy trying to steal his wallet.
But most of all he didn't consider that he would miss the company of a woman
with a friendly face and sweet voice. But here he was seven years later and he
did miss those things. Not enough to go back to the city, but definitely enough
to rise onto his feet and frown fiercely calling himself all kinds of ass for
woosing out and thinking the thoughts of a sap.
"You
are too old for this, Sid," he berated himself.
Thinking that what he
needed was a stiff drink or at least a run several miles, Sid turned away from
the lake heading the direction of the cottage. He'd taken maybe twelve steps
before he began to feel the earth beneath his feet vibrate. Pausing, he
frowned, "What the hell?" Nobody told him this area was prone to
quake. Before he could curse again, the ground vibrating resumed, this time
with more force. When a large shadow fell over his own, Sid looked up to see
that something was covering the light of the sun just beyond the lake.
Continuing to watch, Sid
saw something falling from the sky. As it fell from beneath the shadow of the
object blocking the sun, Sid watched as it continued to plummet to the earth or
more specifically the cold watery embrace of his lake. The object was falling
fast and as it moved closer Sid was surprised to see that the object was
definite human in shape. With the light of the sun behind it, Sid couldn't make
out any distinguishing features. He could however make out two arms and two
legs. Swearing, Sid realized that whoever it was wasn't going to enjoy the feel
of the surface of the water after falling such a great distance. He also
realized that the person would likely drown if he didn't save him. Sid
naturally assumed that it was some guy that was taking a chance with his life.
Parachuter's weren't an uncommon sight. Luckily for this one, he managed to
land in water and not on the ground. He would definitely be sore, but at least
he wouldn't be dead.
When the guy hit the water,
Sid winced for him. Sprinting back to the lake's edge, Sid looked up at the sky
once again. Funny he'd never seen a plane the breath of the one blocking the
sun before. Hell and just a few minutes ago he'd been thinking that things were
getting a little to quiet around there.
Diving head first into the
frigid water Sid swam quickly to the center of the lake. Taking a deep breath,
he plunged beneath the surface. It took his eyes several seconds to adjust to
the water without. When they did, Sid was able to barely make out the man's
body sinking like a stone out of his reach. Shit, was he even conscious?
Turning, Sid dived after the person. The nearer he got to the person the more
he realized that he was not a he at all, but was instead a she. A she with snow
white hair and chocolate skin. A she that was staining the water around her
red. A she that was fully unconscious and if he didn't get her to the surface
real fast was likely to drown if she wasn't dead already. Finally reaching her,
Sid slipped an arm around her waist and began to force the both of them back to
the surface.
Breaking the surface with a
loud gasp, Sid made for the shore. Once there, he laid the unconscious woman on
the grass, her ankles still dangling in the lake water. Not sparing any time,
Sid felt her neck for a pulse, laying a hand over her heart he checked for her
heart beat. The good news was her heart was still beating, barely, the bad news
was the woman wasn't breathing. Acting before he could think, Sid tilted her
head back and opened her mouth to administer CPR.
In a matter of seconds, the
woman was coughing up water. Sid winced when he heard the sound of her cough.
Turning her onto her side, so that she could get rid of as much of the water as
possible. Sid inspected the package that dropped out of the sky.
She looked as if she'd just
been through a battle. Her long white hair was tangled and wet, her complexion
was pale. There was a hole in her shoulder, leaking, covered in newly wet
blood. Sid suspected that the woman had lost a bit of blood as the wound hadn't
been covered and there didn't look as if she'd made an attempt to stop the
flow. Inspecting the wound closer, Sid thought he recognized what made it.
"Seems you've had a little argument with a heavy-caliber weapon," he
spoke to her though he knew she couldn't hear him as she'd fainted back into a
troubled sleep.
Deciding that she was
probably suffering more wounds, Sid gently lifted her into his arms and headed
to his house. What he needed to do was get her into a soft bed and under a good
light, so he could properly inspect the damage. When she whimpered and snuggled
deeper into his embrace, Sid looked down at her face and noticed for the first
time how fragile she looked. How her hair was not all white but was instead
streaked with silver. How very beautiful she was. Far more attractive than any
other woman he'd ever encountered in his long traveled life. When she gasped a
second time, Sid found himself catching his breath, trying unsuccessfully to
control the erratic beating of his heart.
"Damn, be careful what
you wish for Sid ol' boy. Be careful what you wish for," he whispered to
himself. Not only was his solitude interrupted, his beautiful scenery
overshadowed, but now he found himself walking to his home with a white haired
siren in his arms. Now all he needed was some kind of nefarious encounter.
He hadn't traveled but two
steps after thinking the thought before the ground shook violently beneath his
feet and the hair on the back of his neck began to stand on end. Suddenly his
dormant protective instincts rose to the fore. Instincts long buried below the
surface. Muscles tightening, mind and body tensing, Sid slowly turned back to
the lake, the woman held protectively in his arms. When the earth settled, he
heard a jet engine humming, he felt a low heat, and he saw a tall robot topping
six meters standing just beyond the trembling surface of the lake he'd just
exited.
What do we have here?
Kneeling slowly, Sid laid the unconscious woman down and stepped over her,
putting himself between her and the robotic monstrosity.
In a voice vaguely human
but unmistakably metallic, the robot spoke, the sound resounding from somewhere
deep in its chest. "Still receiving vital signs from mutant threat.
Completing new termination sequence as previously programmed."
Sid grasping the message
and storing the information assumed his fighting stance. This thing was here to
kill the woman, and he wasn't about to let that happen. "Don't know what
you're babbling about, junkpile... but be sure that if you take even one step
near the girl, your miserable circuit board is going to be shut down
permanently!"
The robot, undaunted,
stepped forward. "This units primary function is to eliminate the mutant
female and any and all non-human mutants. Sensors confirm that designated male
subject is not a mutant. Therefore this unit will not engage in combat with
designate human male. Step away from the mutant, human, as this incident does
not require your presence you are free to go."
Rage began to simmer and
pulsate within Sid's mind, converting itself almost instantly into raw energy;
raw energy that began to flood his veins and flow freely through his body. As
the feel of the power grew, Sid recalled the teachings of one of his old
mentors. It was more of a warning really, but it was no less important than any
of the lesson's he'd learned. You must not let your inner feelings overwhelm
you. You must always keep control of your internal energy... The rage of the
wounded wolf is good and frightfully powerful to behold, but without a human
conscience to shape it into a fighting machine, it is worthless. It is too wild
to defeat its opponent. A misunderstanding between the feral rage and the human
conscious will always lead to defeat and disgrace.
Following his master's
instructions, Sid crossed his arms, closed his eyes and focused the energy
rising to his palms. The energy was a tangible thing that crackled and sparked
making his flesh as hot as the sun. Soon that heat burst into orange violet
flames; flames that grew larger and hotter as more of his focused energy
collected within his arms.
Snapping his eyes open, he
focused their silver-fire brand anger onto the metallic trespasser.
"Listen up, you overgrown Coke dispenser. You've got two seconds to fly
your metallic ass outta my sight before I run out of patience," he growled
taking a menacing half-step forward. His mind was focused, his body was primed.
He was ready to strike.
The robot's countenance
unable to change, did not. When next it spoke the words rang with finality.
"Your resistance has been documented, human. As you refuse to give up the
mutant female, this unit will now proceed to destroy you before completing its
appointed task." And with that, it extended one of its arms, palm open: a
six-barrel heavy machine-gun protruded from under its forearm, and as its
barrels began to rotate, the expectant explosions of several rounds of ammo
followed.
Sid was really sick of that
things voice. Knowing that he had better move before one of those bullets hit
the unconscious woman, Sid sprinted head long right at the robot. Now, it's me
or you, big guy! Sid thought executing a series of hand springs to avoid one
particular bombardment of bullets. Sid continued to charge the machine,
effectively making the machine gun attack useless as he was too close now for
the bullets to reach him. The robot soon stopped firing and lifted his foot in
an attempt to crush him. His actions were slow, Sid suspected that the machine
didn't consider him a real threat and so was not wasting any of its special
weaponry on him.
Big mistake. With a savage
battlecry, Sid quickly flexed his legs and jumped, using what little energy
remaining in him unchanneled to boost the altitude further, and delivered a
devastating uppercut under the machines jaw. This move was immediately followed
by a straight left kick. The big machine's head was covered in Sid's flaming
energy and exploded with an almost deafening sound as the young man's feet
again made contact with solid ground. Not waiting, he managed to somersault out
of the way of a massive piece of metal that probably would have crushed his
skull.
The gigantic headless body
of the giant monstrosity wavered dangerously before crashing onto its back. The
ground shook violently once again, then settled as dust rose obscuring the new
day air. The robot did not rise.
Smirking, Sid stood up
again and examined his handiwork. "And as usual, Renegade wins the match
without a scratch. The crowd is going wild," he joked. "So long,
sucker!" he murmured. Sid turned and made his way back to the house.
Kneeling for a second time, he lifted the unconscious woman, correction, the unconscious
'mutant female', Sid thought remembering the robots words, into his arms.
"Sorry for the delay, Miss", he apologized in a whisper. "Some
men just don't know when to quit. That brute won't pester you anymore. You have
my word as a gentleman." That said, Sid carried his bundle into his house
and shut the front door.
Once in his bedroom, he
gently laid her on his bed and with his first-aid kit ready for use he began
inspecting her wounds. First and foremost he had to check the bullet wound.
Removing the short sleeve of her blue tee with the help of a pair of scissors,
Sid leaned into the light of a bedside lamp and began to probe for a bullet. He
was relieved that he didn't find one. The shot was clean. With a hot towel he
began to clean the area. "Hmm, not too bad, after all," he said more
for his benefit than hers. It's been a while since he had to patch anyone up.
Hell, most of the time he'd been patching his self up. "The bullet has
paid only a short visit, and the bones are intact. It's gonna hurt like hell,
Miss, but at least you can still use it," he mumbled. Once the area was
cleaned to his satisfaction, he carefully applied antiseptics and hemostats to
disinfect and prevent any more bleeding. He made sure that the bandage, a long
white piece of clothe was as tight as he could make it without completely
cutting off the flow of blood to her lower arm.
Through the entire process,
the woman didn't move.
"And now," he
continued, washing his hands in another hot water basin he'd fetched for that
purpose, "for the rest. Let's see...." Lifting the scissors, Sid used
them to cut down the center of her soaked tee trying not to stare as the fabric
clinging to her like a second skin and she wasn't wearing a bra. Removing the
shirt, Sid tried to remain professional as he inspected the discoloration on
both her chest and along her side. There was swelling, Sid hoped that there
wasn't any internal bleeding. Before reaching for the sponge he planned to use
to clean her skin, Sid reached for the fastening of her jeans. Lord he hoped
she was wearing panties, at least. He was only human after all. A red blooded
human male in fact whose temperature was rising the longer he sat there seeing,
touching, heck just being with the half naked finely shaped woman lying in his
bed.
Pulling the waistband of
the jeans down, Sid was relieved to see that the woman was indeed wearing a
pair of bikini briefs. They didn't cover much, but they covered enough. Fully
removing the jeans, he tossed them across the room.
Sid saw that the
discoloration at her waist did, in fact, extend below her waist line. These
bruises weren't the work of a machine. Someone had hit her or kicked her. As
his fingers traveled along her rib cage an expression of intense pain crossed
the woman's face when his fingers met the center of the large bruised patch
covering her chest. Trying to shift away from his fingers, the woman, though
still sleep, moaned and whimpered.
"Damn," he
snarled. A reaction like that could only mean that she either had a couple of
crushed ribs of a couple of bruised ribs. Sid hoped it was the latter, he could
only do so much and repairing broken ribs wasn't one of the things he could do.
Waiting until the woman's moaning had stopped, Sid carefully applied a pair of
rigid sticks to her left side, and fastened them with another strip of white
clothe. Weather they were bruised or broken she was going to need to keep still
if they were going to have even a small chance to heal.
"Hope that works,
miss, or you'll have some nasty problems in the long run," he said
sympathetically. The woman moaned, shaking convulsively, shifting her head left
and right, her hands alternately gripping and releasing the sheet. Wanting to
calm her, but knowing that she was in a hellish nightmare that he couldn't
rescue her from, Sid ran his knuckles slowly along the side of her face. She
relaxed and turned to his touch. Her brow, Sid noticed, was dry. His expression
darkened even more. It was also hot. "So feverish I could boil
water."
Deciding there was little
more he could do for her. Sid rose and left the room. When he came back minutes
later, he held a small vial in one hand and a needle in the other. With swift
and sure movements, he put the vial of emerald-green liquid in the syringe, and
injected it in the woman's forearm. Sighing miserably, the woman fell into a
peaceful sleep. Reaching for the bottom of the bed, Sid lifted his comforter
and covered her from her neck down. When that was done, he lifted another
blanket off a chest near the wall and covered her with that one as well.
Thankfully, the woman was in no condition to throw the covers off her body when
she begins to alternate from hot flashes to chills.
Sid pulled a curtain half
way shut so that the sun light from the new day wouldn't shine in her face.
Next he flipped the bedside lamp light off. Picking up the two buckets of
lukewarm water, Sid headed out the room. "I've done all I can, fair lady.
Now, it's up to you," he said softly as he opened the door and stepped out
leaving the door cracked behind him.
authored by David altered
by Valegra