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(Collab) Red's Tales: The Secret Of Purbridge PT6

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“Stay back Ben, if this plan does work, we will have another cave in to worry about,” Red whispered to Ben. He was quiet, but no less scared, digging his nails into his palms. One cave-in nearly sent him catatonic before, but at the very least he’d met Whash that way. The idea of causing a cave in on purpose, weaponizing the collapsing ceiling take out the patrol gave him goosebumps.

“I can hear them too now, let’s get it done Whash,” Ben whispered, he really meant “get it over with” as ragged breath all Red could hear out of him then.

Red gave the signal for Whash to move the puppets, as they moved back toward the main excavation room. The thing’s moved like an old cartoon, a bit stiff at the joints but they proved passable as the patrol spotted Whash’s puppets run by, making all kinds of noise.

“There they are!” one of the mercs yelled and three men ran after the illusions.

Red waited for the mercenaries to pass. Then she followed after them charge in hand, the mercenaries pulled up short as they noticed the figures weren’t quite right.  

“Wait, what the f-” A mercenary started as a charge was tossed towards them and the other explosives. Red ran as the whole tunnel shook with the force of the explosion. Whash was too busy focusing on controlling the figures until the ground around him shook. Seconds later he was running for the ladder. Ben was freaking out.

“Oh thrache! Thrache! Thrache!” Ben stammered.

Red grabbed him and moved him toward the ladder as rubble fell around them one nearly crashing into Red before Whash shielded them with the blue energy The alien groaned before dropping to his knee as he felt the impact. Red turned back to see the small one dragging himself behind the duo. They managed to make it to the ladder before anything else went wrong.

Red moved Ben ahead of her and he scrambled up the ladder quickly, then Red pulled Whash on next before heading up herself as dust rose around them.

“Ben?” Whash groaned, having heard his freakout earlier. He feared that he didn’t get there in time.

Barely construed words answered him. As Ben climbed. Red choked on the dust but then her head reached fresh air.  Whash sighed, glad they were OK as he stumbled over to help the two over, his strength being put to good use.

The bank was shifting as the support below it crumbled.

“Move!” Red called.

They scrambled out of the entrance as the bank sank, the ground literally swallowing it whole. Whash was breathing heavily now. Red crawled over to him to make sure he was okay, he was scared as he huddled in a ball.

“Safe you’re safe,”

“S-safe,” Whash whimpered.

Ben was in a similar state, he just stared straight ahead.

“Ben,” Red tried rousing him.

“Huh,” he muttered.

“Safe,” Whash said, hugging Ben tight.

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Safe!”he whimpered out, happy Ben was OK and that Red was being a mother.

“We need to move, there’s four more out here.” Red reminded. Ben picked himself up.

“Right,” Ben said.  Whash nodded,

“Salum,’ he growled.

“Salum… enemy.” Red agreed. She looked for a good place to relocate. They’d got everyone’s attention. Ironically the building they knew the most was the hotel.

“Don’t think they’d think to look there.” Red stated. “At least not at first.”

“Look?” Whash wondered, not having been with them for that part.

Red just gestured him to follow, Whash keeping his sheild up in case anything happened. Luckily, they got to the entrance before Miller and his crew showed up. Coincidently a new storm cell was passing through as well.

“There they are! Kill the human and Daedalian, but I want the third alive!”

Blaster bolts and bullets began to fly at that.

“So much for that,” Ben grumbled as he darted in. Whash followed right behind, making sure Red didn’t separate as the storm got stronger.

Red had her gun unslung as she dashed in. They took positions smashing windows to aim for their foes. Whash sealed the front door. Any moment Red thought they’d rush the place, but instead they saw someone thrown onto the ground. In the desert wind it was hard to say who, but eventually she thought she recognized it since it was a she.

“Ashley?” Red wondered aloud. It was the first person she thought it could be and she was quickly proven right as Miller walked into view with one of the gunmen aiming a big rifle.

“Thought you could sneak one of my men to your side...nice try, Daedalian.”

“No idea what you’re talking about.” Red replied as she tried to draw a bead on Miller.

“That’s wh-” Ashley tried to say when Miller smashed her across the face with the butt of his gun, drawing blood. Red winced a bit, that girl was a new level of unlucky. She peered through her scope, but in that time the gunner got in Red’s way, aiming for her as well. Her gut feeling was this man wasn’t the only sniper.

“Ben, they’re probably trying to flank us.” Red warned.

“Right,” Ben said readying the carbine as Miller waited for a response.

“Well...so you don’t mind if I take out the trash?” he muttered, Ashley looking terrified.

“Just proves you’re a psychopath! She’s stayed loyal to you!” Red responded. Despite trying to help the situation, Ashley clearly wanted to revoke that claim herself.

“....so you don’t mind,” he grunted out, repeating the question.

“Why would I? She tried to kill us twice.” Red shouted back when her opening revealed itself. She took the time to shoot the merc with the rifle between her and Miller, hitting him in the armored chest and knocking him down. Thinking fast, Ashley swatted the gun away from Miller and backhanded him before running for the general store across the street. The last gunner was too well hidden to hit directly so Ben laid down covering fire as Ashley made it, squeezing the trigger on his carbine as fast as he could.  

“Damn, it’s started.” Ben muttered as Ashley ducked in the general store.

“...hmm, look who just saved their double agent,” Miller chuckled as he took cover, procuring a large caliber backup weapon. The sniper Red shot started to recover, stumbling over to some other building next to the general store. Whash was trying to peek over and see what the commotion was.

“Stay down,” Red advised. Whash agreed as Miller started blabbing again.

“So, shall we cut a deal then? Seems we have an impasse.”

“Why would I cut a deal?” Red replied as she took a shot at a merc behind cover, but he ducked out of the way.

“I was just trying to be polite...but OK,” he said, trying to shout at Whash to communicate. Whash looked uncomfortably at Red. The merc could well be the kid’s best shot at getting any answers.

“Don’t listen. He’s Salum, not a friend.” Red warned. Whash sighed, it was like he knew but the dossiers and his language being spoken had enticed him.

Ben ducked down as a bolt seared through the wall. “Son of a slutty Rhysellien!” He grunted and returned fire.

“Slut!” Whash repeated, drawing an energy spear. He knew he was being played, that man didn’t want to be his friend. He shouted again before chucking it at Miller himself, the spear going through a boulder and Miller narrowly avoiding getting impaled.

“I could’ve offered him closure Daedalian. Now I’ll rip that armor off his body and let it flounder cus of you!”

“Then you would have sold him off as an oddity, I know your type.” Red replied.  

“I’d use it to my heart’s content! No one would put anywhere near as much effort as I to get this far! Noone else deserves it!” he yelled before manically throwing a grenade at their building.

“Incoming!” Red shouted as she covered her ears. The thing was flying their way, but a loud gunshot rang out.

“Thrache!” Miller shouted as the grenade was knocked elsewhere midway.

“Screw you!” Ashley shouted, holding an old hunting shotgun as she managed to skeet shoot it more towards Miller’s group, getting their heads down.

Red and Ben gaped as the grenade detonated, sending one of the armored mooks flying. seemed not killing her had paid off.  Whash groaned, wondering what had happened.

“Boom,” Ben informed him

"Boom," he grunted back as the gunfire continued the backdoor behind them crumpled as it was broke down.

Red swiveled to cover the back, seeing an armored figure swinging around something producing a jet of flame. Red fired a shot aiming for the head but he was behind cover by then, upstairs.

She couldn’t have him staying there. Swapping to her Daedalian blade Red advanced to where he’d gone. Whash wished Red luck as he started to chuck more energy spears out the window, Ben helped out by Ashley’s shotgun blasts, though the turncoat was being focused now. Red's nose smelled heat the second room on the left. An ambush.

Red waited and positioned herself to intercept the being, only for an open flame to cut through the wall, it giving way.

“Come on,” She growled. The figure silently exited, twirling what looked to be a welder’s torch with a thin two foot flame spewing out. His armor was a mix of bulletproof metals and some cushion, probably fireproof. Red’s nose knew that was more than Acetylene in the fuel tank, the flame was a bright blue.

“Nice antique, shame it melts like anything else” he sneered before swiping low for her legs.

Red leapt back from the flame, not wanting to find out out how easily she would burn before flanking the man’s left side and aiming a cut for the shoulder, the blade biting into the armor, but the shoulderpad saved his appendage from being severed as Red backed off for fear of counterattack. He smirked before twirling the torch and going to slice open her belly with the heat.

Red leapt back before striking out and nearly catching her opponent’s hand as he backed off. Advancing, Red feinted for his neck before chopping for his free arm in hopes of knocking away the torch, he backed up and aimed the nozzle at the floor on accident, setting fire to the carpet Red was standing on.

Red moved back from the flames as the sprinkler came on. She growled as she moved forward, she tempted the merc with an opening for her leg, but instead he tried to cleave into Red’s skull with a downward chop.

Red stepped into the attack, feeling immense heat near her face as she brought her blade up and then kicked him in shin, only stopped by a metal plate protecting his knee. The man did buckle though and drop his weapon, the torch busy setting the wall to her left on fire. She took this chance for a strike to the throat with the side of her hand, hitting cloth and flesh.

“Urk!” the man groaned, but she took a headbutt to her snout in return. With the torch on the floor, he tried to gain the edge and choke her with one hand.

Red struggled, not wanting to test if he was strong enough to break her neck, managing to grasp at his hand in the sensitive spot between the thumb and index finger. She promptly twisted it, eliciting a howl of pain. He swung for her, but being a free hand, the impact tolerable- better than being set alight.

The man eventually shoved Red aside before diving for his makeshift weapon. That entire side of the hallway was now alight, but he had every intention of turning Red’s crimson fur a black charcoal. Turning his back to Red was the last mistake he made though the Daedalian quickly sliced into the tube that was supplying fuel, a burst of flame erupting from it and made the weapon useless before she found an opening in the armor by his neck and slashed for it, blood spattered against a nearby wall. The man dropped dead, blood pouring, but the fire had spread to most of the second floor by then.

“Damn,” Red muttered at the spreading fire. She coughed as smoke began to fill the air. Whash ran up the stairs soon after, worried by the fire.

“Red?!” he called out as smoke clouded his visor, he trying to wipe it clean.

“Whash, come on.” She said motioning him back down as she ran. Red got most of the way downstairs when the fire began to spread, especially around where the torch landed. Whash groaned before he activated his suit’s blue energy and tried to douse it while Ben was still shooting it out with Miller’s men.

Red took a new position and fired. “Well, things have slightly improved.”

“Guess so,” Ben agreed. Whash hollered from upstairs, something about fire as Ben was running low on ammo.

“Sorry this turned crazy fast.” Red said.

Smoke was filling the hotel and already the second floor was beginning to collapse into the first.

“Nah, Red. You know we live for this.”

Red started to respond when she heard something, the roar of turbines were fast approaching. It had to be the militia.

“Thrache!” Miller shouted before Red saw explosives tossed around, they were retreating and leaving a shock for anyone on foot who wanted to follow.

“The militia!” Ben shouted.

“About time!” Red growled.

There was the sound of gunfire as the trio exited the burning building. Joined by Ashley, two armored militia men walked up to Red.

“Cavalry! Tell em I’m good now!” Ashley grunted, one of the militiamen clearly wary of her.

There was a bit of talking but Red made it clear that they weren’t mercs and Ashley was willing to cooperate. Repercussions were in order, but she helped in the end.

“Alright, no arrests for now then. You’re Red of Chohe, correct? Good thing we came when we did, Purbridge usually doesn’t bother contacting us.”

“Too bad, might have saved them.” Ben said darkly.

“Wait, what happened here?” the militiaman asked nervously. Eyes were on Ashley, who got nervous.

“My boss, Mercenary, Chance Miller. He was self-funding a dig around here, that’s what he told us….left out the part where he wanted to wipe the population before doing so…” she muttered.

“Is there anyone left?” the militiaman asked in horror.

Red shook her head, “Not that we’ve found. Only a bunch of bodies.”  

“Jesus….I’ll send someone to roundup what we can...what were they digging for?” he asked just as Whash was peeking his head outside.

“Artifacts. Something nuts like that.” Ben said as he saw Whash walk up warily behind the militia man.

Neither Red nor Ben felt like mentioning he’d found something and Ashley picked up on that, pretending to ignore Whash as he looked over the Militia.

“Imishi or Salum?” Whash questioned, getting shushed by Ben for now.

“Right, you guys sit down, we’ll have medics check you out soon. Ms. Ashley we’ll have someone follow you around. No offense,” he said to no complaint, ignoring Whash, who tilted his head sideways in confusion at how little everyone else seemed to care about him.

“Job well done,” Ben said as he found a seat.

Red looked to Whash, poor thing. What would he do now? Whash took a seat on Red’s lap, muttering to himself, not sure what to do. Things seemed over, but Miller had gotten away. He had the dossier, but it was hardly the same as talking with someone who knew him.

“Sucks,” Red said.

“I’m surprised they didn't seem to notice him.” Ben said. Red figured they were too busy tracking

Miller and probably assumed he was just an offworlder who required an envirosuit.

“Miller was wrong about Whash never being able to fit in I guess...can’t say it would be easy though,” she sighed.

“So what now?” Ben asked.

“That’s a good question. Guess we’ll wait around for a bit then head back.”

The Militia was swarming the area before long. They found some of the mercs under Miller’s control on the outskirts of town, but not the man himself unfortunately.

“Looks like he’s slipped, away.” The militiaman said. “We got some of his flunkies though. Shot another. I doubt this man survive in the badlands alone.”

“Heh, I’d love to see him eaten by sandlampries.” Ben remarked.

“We’ll keep searching for him, you guys need a ride?”

Red looked to Whash. “Nah, we’ll drive.”

Whash nodded happily. Luckily it seemed the Militiamen didn't really care about Whash. Nobody questioned, when he was leaving with Red though Ashley was asked to come with the militia. She sighed before asking to talk with Red first if she was OK with that.

“Make it fast,”

“I know you don’t believe I was innocent in the deaths...but you saved my ass, even if you didn’t want to. So thanks, I’m gonna try and go clean.”

“I’d advise that,” Red said. “You’ve probably seen by now where that lifestyle leads.”

“Well, at the very least I’ll fact-check who my next boss is,” she grunted out, rubbing her neck.

“Good luck to you. I’m sure your sentence might be lenient,” Red nodded. Ashely didn’t like the sound of being arrested at all, but that was her best deal as she was led off.

“Maybe she should try a career change. Perhaps she should be a hotel clerk for real.” Ben quipped.

“Sure you don’t want an escort?” one of the other militiamen asked, but he wasn’t pressing anything. He was preferring to be polite, which Red did appreciate. “At least some more rations for the road?”

“We’ll take the rations.” Red said. “Generous of you.”

“Today’s been bad enough I think for you and your kids,” he commented, much to Ben’s annoyance. Soon, the trio were packed. Home free, except for what to do with Whash.

“Maybe we can introduce him to professor Ortagh?” Ben suggested.

“Don’t know. He’ll go crazy over him.” Red said. They started out of the ghost town, the buggy running just fine. “Let’s not subject him to that.”

“Ortagh?” Whash questioned, finding a comfy spot in the backseat.

“Professor of history and archeology.”

They drove on for a bit more the town fading behind them.

“Ortagh Salum?” he questioned, wondering why they were hesitant to go with that idea.

“No…” Red said. She couldn’t quite thing how to describe her hesitation, but she made it clear she was holding out for a better idea. Whash sighed as they went further into the desert storm. Then a loud bang shot out, Red’s buggy was rocked before slowly coming to a stop.

“Boom!” Whash shouted fearfully. Something hit the engine and practically melted it.

“Bail out!” Red shouted as she and Ben leapt out followed by Whash, who put up a barrier for them.

“Salum?!” he said, scared for all of their lives.

“Salum,” Red confirmed, grabbing her rifle.

“Now what?” Ben asked.

“I hope you didn’t underestimate my tenacity, Daedalian!” shouted the distinct voice of Miller.

“Miller? Why don’t you go back to Purbridge there’s people there dying to meet you!” Red said as she and Ben looked for him.

“That was your doing, wasn’t it? I'll have to clear it again soon enough, but I will need your little friend to fund this expedition.”

“So now you admit he’s just a paycheck for you?” she tried to focus in on his voice.

“Oh he’s more than that, but if I’m gonna get to the bottom of this species, I do need to make sacrifices. Besides I can find his mother, you can’t,” he taunted, Red hearing the voice from her left. Ben grit his teeth, that promise had to be what made Whash unbalanced earlier.

“You twocred thug!” Ben shouted feeling protective of Whash as he readied his carbine.

Red fired a shot towards the voice. “It’s not happening. There’s always more than one way.”

“Come now, I’ve spent a lifetime trying to get to this point and I won’t spend much longer working out another way!”he shouted from behind cover.

“He’s our friend, and we’re not handing him over to a mercenary nutjob!” Ben called out. He took a few potshots, back to his old gun.

“I doubt that, boy” Miller yelled before chucking another grenade where the trio was hiding. It landed by some rocks to their left. They weren’t in danger of shrapnel, but the explosion was bound to freak out Whash. In an attempt to prevent this Ben held him down.

“Safe, safe.” He muttered as the grenade went off, Whash clutching Red in fear, nearly wrenching her shoulder with his super strength.

“I doubt you can keep him safe, not if I’m a problem,” Miller taunted as the origin of the voice shifted more south. He was trying to flank them, but Whash was near helpless as he was now.

“Hand him over. I can give him so much you never could with one document.”

“One problem, you’re psychotic!” Ben shouted he fired a few blind shots.

“Thrache!” Miller shouted as he ducked for cover, Red knew then where he was in the dust. “He’ll never find her without me!”

“Whash?” Red asked. Making sure he was safe. He nodded softly, trying to cover his head.

Red tried to draw a bead on where Miller was, one good shot was all she needed, but instead she saw another grenade head her way.

“No!” Whash shouted before grabbing the grenade in a water bubble.

“Whoah...” Ben exclaimed. Whash looked terrified as he fought to contain it.

Red covered her ears, unable to do anything else and Whash was sent back from the blast as it breached the bubble. Despite lowering the potency of the blast, it was enough to disorient everyone and the little guy was hurting as he clutched his chest.

“You better not have hurt him!” Miller howled out in madness.

“Who threw a grenade genius?” Ben retorted as he rubbed at his head, feeling some of the shockwave as well.

“See to Whash,” Red growled. She thought she saw a figure moving. She squeezed her trigger, a metal clank signifying a hit on his armor. She thought it was inefficient, but Miller did cry out in frustration from the hit. His footsteps stopped.

“Did you get him?” Ben asked.

Red kept her gun trained on where she’d last detected Miller. “Maybe,” She waited for movement, anything. Her ears perked first, something shifted from her right. She saw him charging her with yet another explosive in hand, he seeming to fancy himself a mad bomber in his armor.

“I’ve had it!” Red exclaimed she fired again, this time aiming for the hand clutching the explosive, hitting it dead center and igniting it. The grenade engulfed the mad mercenary, but Red was close to the radius. She closed her eyes and waited for it to burn, but instead a blue energy wrapped around her, protecting her from shrapnel and the heat of the blast.

“Safe,” Whash huffed out while Ben was watching him.

Red turned to them, “Thank you friend.” She sighed.

“Friend,” he huffed weakly. Red was worried Whash was injured, but his suit seemed to hold up. He was loopy, but alive though she couldn’t be entirely sure.

“Ben, get the flaregun, we’re definitely needing a ride now.” Red groaned as she took his place kneeling by Whash. An APC was over by them in minutes, they coming out armed and finding the trio.

“Guess you should have taken the APC home,” the same militiaman mused as several of his fellow guardsman went out on the perimeter.

“Yeah, but on the bright side, we found Miller,” Ben said, darkly pointing to some scorched sand where he detonated his last stand.

Red requested the three get taken home, and once more the militia men in charge of that were desensitized enough by Caligula’s usual craziness to pay Whash little mind. The fish boy was injected with a painkiller after it was mentioned removing the suit in the middle of a desert storm was a bad idea. One of the medics did manage to hook up a device to the suit so Whash could have his vitals checked.

“For being in the vicinity of a grenade blast he’ll recover. Though I would recommend you do have someone look at him when he can remove,” the medic said, patting Whash on the helm. He seemed to like it, the full diagnosis was that he avoided internal injuries. It was good news to be sure, but he was busy looking over Miller’s dossiers, his last bit of influence on the world and maybe the only person Whash could ask for concrete answers about his people.

“I’m sorry.” Red said. “He was a bad man. Salum.”

“Salum,” he responded, quiet until Red was dropped off back home, the buggy would get a tow after the Militia finished sorting things out. With that, it seemed Whash had been reading over the book a few times now,but they were home...albeit, the mapping job still nowhere near done.

Ben stretched his arms. “Well guess I should get back to my place.” He looked at Whash

“Unless you’d rather I stay here for a bit, or take him with me.”

Red sat on her sofa and sighed. Whash did the same.

“Red and Ben friends,” he spoke aloud, muttering to himself a bit as he looked through Miller’s handwriting. With that he started to look around for something to write on, eventually grunting and using his powers to start forming blue energy in the form of words. “I. Found.New. Family.” he grunted, before repeating what he did before, looking back to the two books.

“New family, he means us.” Ben remarked.

Red perked her ears forward. “Whash?” She hoped he’d go on.

“Will attempt to discover. Other Language.” he spelled out with his energy, trying to steal entire phrases with the context of what was written. “Need help to study. Then. The Search for my. Mother. Can resume.” he muttered, double checking the spelling, hoping that got across. Red could see him flipping pages and using Miller’s sticky notes on top of his own mom’s notes to frankenstein his message.

Red smiled, “I knew you wouldn’t give up. We’ll help you study, we’ll help however we can.”

“Friends! Imiishi!” he shouted, before hugging the two one more time. “Imiishi is...defender,” he grunted.

“Imiishi, we were close.” Ben said.

“I think I know a few who can help.” Red said stroking her muzzle.

                                        ***

A few weeks later Red and Ben were waving goodbye to an armoured individual as he boarded a starship. Whash clutched the two dossiers that belonged to the former Captain Miller. As vile as the man was, it seemed his discovery actually would do some good to the young Cla'iluhn as he left on his own journey, waving back to his new family as he looked for his old.

“Will he be okay?” Ben asked.

“He’s got hope, a purpose, and a better grasp of the language. I’ve got a good feeling.”
The finale is here! Red, Ben and Whash fight Miller and his mercenaries one last time. Can they hold out until he militia arrives? What will become of Whash?

This chapter is a bit lengthier than the last few but it wraps this tale up neatly in a bow.

Also spinoff potential for Whash.

Once again this is a co-written with JFox234 Check his page out to he's promised he's going to be more active. Also if you enjoyed this be on the lookout for more potential collabs between us, we've actually done quite a few some with familiar characters.
© 2017 - 2024 MercenaryBlade
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Quinkenguard's avatar

Nice job both of you!