![X :Q](./images/smilies/awesome_emote3.png)
Enjoy! Feedback is appreciated as always. I treat fanfic like this as practice anyway.
-------------------------------------------------------
Part II
«Only guy the old man kicked up to was Baron Revilgaz himself. He was as far up on the food chain as you could get without being part of the Blackwater Raiders.» She stumped out her cigarette in the ashtray before immediately lighting a new one. «It sucks. The way he went out. Ventilated by some upstart punk who’s gonna be gone as soon as the tide turns more or less. Guys like that don’t pay their dues, and that’s all it takes to make the Baron keelhaul you and your buddies.» She rested her elbow on the table, holding the cigarette aloft between her fingers as she looked down towards the pier. The evening sun kept Ratchet warm and dry. The heat here was nothing like the Cape of Stranglethorn.
«Sign of the times, I guess.» Luca sat across the table from her, picking his teeth. «They don’t make ‘em like the old man anymore. Now it’s all punk gangsters and numbskulled thugs. Idiots who don’t know shit about respect.»
«Hear hear. You know I gotta admit I find it strange that you’re on this side, and not the other. I mean you could have fit right in with that crowd.» She looked at him.
«Ah you know I uh... I admired the old man, you know? Figured there had to be a reason why he managed to get that old while living this life.»
«Tch! Sure as shit, Luca. I think that’s the smartest thing I’ve ever heard you say.» She took a drag from her cigarette, exhaling the plume of smoke upwards at the canopy overhead.
«Ayy, there you go breakin’ my balls again, sweet sugar.» Their eyes met. His was weary, and didn’t seem to be in the mood for cracking jokes. Very unlike him. Hers were cold, as they often were, though this time there was a rage in them that had been put on ice. Anyone could tell she was bothered.
«But it’s not just that. People pissed their pants when he showed his face. I wanted to be like him in the end. Kinda broke my heart that he liked you a lot more. I think you have it in your blood, just like he did. You were the last one to join us, years after me and Goon even. And yet you were the one he trusted the most. My guess is he saw somethin’ in you that me and Goon didn’t have.»
«This sounds a lot like high praise, Luca.» She cracked a smile at him. «Aren’t you bitter though? I mean didn’t that pretty much ruin your dream?»
«Ah I knew better than to get mopey about it. I figured I could still earn his favor in time. Or at least learn enough from him for when I’d eventually strike out on my own. Old man was gonna kick the bucket some day anyway. Came a lot sooner than I expected. I ain’t ready to do my own thing yet.»
«Sure you are. I mean, in your own words you seem to wanna honor the old man’s ways. Maybe they still make ‘em like that after all, eh?»
«You really think so? I uh... I never felt like I’d be a good boss, you know.»
«Nobody is when they first get into it I think. There’s a learning process with everything. And if you paid attention to half the things the old man did and told us, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure the rest out in time.» She took another drag from the cigarette before stumping it out in the ashtray with the others. She reached for her case to find another, but it was empty. Her brow furrowed – Bad time to run out of smokes.
She stood up from the table, shouldering her bag.
«I gotta go find some more smokes.»
Next moment, a small band of thugs flung the doors of the tavern open, out to the terrace where the two were sat. They had their guns trained on the two goblins.
«The Boss sends his regards, you slick bastards.»
They opened fire right away. Constance and Luca had already flipped the table on its side and taken cover, reaching for their weapons in the process. The other people present either went for cover as well or got the hell out of dodge. The terrace was in complete chaos. Constance loaded her rifle to return fire. Luca had pulled his pistol, though he was not as eager to shoot back right away.
«Gazlowe’s fuckin’ wrenches! These guys have some nerve!» She peeked out beside the table, drawing a bead on the first thug she spotted and blew a big hole in him. No one could say Constance wasn’t an expert sharpshooter, and at this range it was peanuts. She ejected the empty case, putting in a new one with practiced ease. She leaned out again, but she quickly ducked back behind cover, as she was met with the muzzle of a blunderbuss trained on her side of the table, she barely ducked far enough away before the end of the table got shredded by the scattergun, sending wooden splinters everywhere. Constance took the opportunity afterwards, to peek out and blow the lady’s head off. There were two guys left coming at them with their swords drawn, as their guns were now empty, but they were closing the gap faster than either Constance or Luca could gun them down. They were caught in the melee. Constance wasn’t half as good in hand-to-hand, but she was agile at least. Luca, on the other hand was a skilled fighter. In the blink of an eye he’d dropped his gun to bring his blades to bare, the sunlight reflected off the shiny blades as they came out of their hidden sheaths in his armor.
The two remaining thugs came at them in tandem, both of them were goblins. Luca locked blades with one, the other went for Constance, though his eyes were on Luca before he came at her. He tried to kick her, but she was able to dodge out of the way. She held her rifle ready to parry the thug’s cutlass, but it was a faint, instead his boot connected with her gut, knocking the wind out of her and sending her to the floor. The thug grinned at her and turned his attention to Luca, it was clear they wanted to stack their odds in this fight.
She tried to yell out to her boyfriend, but she could barely make out the words after being kicked like that.
«L-.. Luca!» She coughed as she tried desperately to catch her breath, clamoring to her feet.
Luca had the other thug in a hold at this point, slitting his throat and dropping him in order to take on his incoming friend, but he could not raise his guard in time. They both tumbled to the floor, Luca lost one of his knives and his head smacked against the tile floor, sending him into a daze. He struggled against the assailant on top of him, trying to bring his blade down on Luca. They traded a few blows with their fists and heads, but Luca wasn’t winning. Constance leapt towards them, grabbing a chair on the way and smacked it across the thug’s back, utterly destroying the flimsy piece of furniture in the process. He stumbled off of Luca, almost falling over but managed to stay on his feet. Constance scooped Luca’s discarded knife up off the floor and charged at the disoriented thug. He didn’t even have time to try and raise his guard before Constance ran him through with the knife. The thug gargled and spat out some blood as his eyes grew wide, knowing his end had come. He went limp and flopped down on the floor as Constance let go of him.
She leaned against a support beam, sliding down to sit on the floor, giving a long tired sigh. Luca groaned on the floor, pinching his nose bridge.
«You alright, hon?» Constance looked over at him.
«Yeah... My head is spinning though, and my ears are ringing. Asshole gave me a proper concussion. I probably need a medic.»
Constance’s eyes darted towards the door again as the sound of heavy, hurried steps from multiple people came from the direction of the stairs. Her heart practically jumped up into her throat, but in the next moment she was relieved to see it was just the Ratchet Bruisers coming in. She raised her hand to wave a greeting to them.
«Geez, what a mess.»
«You can say that again. I’m uninjured, but my man here needs the doc. This idiot almost cracked his skull open on the floor here.» She nodded towards the corpse of the goblin laying dead on the floor next to her with his eyes still wide open.
«You didn’t instigate any of this did you?»
«Nope. I was just about to go buy some smokes when these amateurs came in guns blazing.» She got up on her feet again. She took her glasses off, wiping the blood off them with a piece of cloth. She wiped her face with the back of her hand before putting the glasses back on her nose. She gave another sigh. «Much better. Can I take my man to the doc now? You guys will clean this up, right? Sorry we made such a mess.» She walked over to collect her rifle and her bag again, then came back over to pull Luca off the floor.
«Ey, no need to be a smartass about it, lady.»
«Sorry. I know this part of your job sucks.» Supporting Luca at her side, she walked downstairs and made for the town doctor.