They reached the ledge and the rabbit started setting up the plank, but Coal stopped him. “Wait,” he said. “Not yet.”
He worried that the remaining bobcat might smash it like the other one had, or that even if Zank and the others managed to cross safely, they’d still need to contend with the scorpion.
He didn’t see a clean way out of this. Disposing of the other bobcat was the only path forward.
“Help Zank!” Coal yelled to Marl across the divide.
To his credit, the wolverine did not question the command or offer any resistance. He simply nodded and ran toward Zank, who had to be running out of ammunition sooner rather than later.
Marl whisked right past the rabbit and the scorpion and knelt down to grab something near the other side of the roof. Coal couldn’t see the object at all, but he knew it had to be the previously-discarded handgun.
The bobcat couldn’t contend with both Zank and Marl at the same time. Not with one arm out of the picture. He already knew how much of a threat Marl posed, so he rotated the machine to follow him, leaving himself vulnerable to an attack from Zank.
Zank bent his knees then sprang into the air, grabbing onto the HM-3’s tail yet again before dropping down onto its back with ease.
All the while, Marl was firing distraction shots at the bobcat, who was too busy blocking them with his one functional claw to pay any attention to the rabbit on his back.
Unfortunately for him, that meant it was only a few moments before Zank lodged a bullet in his head.
The scorpion halted immediately with no one controlling it anymore. It stood lifelessly on the rooftop, a black statue silhouetted against the moon.
Zank slid down off the machine, panting heavily. Marl circled around and gave his friend a brotherly pat on the back. The two then returned to Venny, who was still unconscious.
Coal and the black rabbit positioned the new piece of wood so that the others could safely cross the alleyway. Zank came over first, followed by Marl cautiously carrying Venny.
The black rabbit was still demanding to know what happened to his sign, but everyone was too exhausted and irritable to bother explaining everything to him. Instead, they descended the ladder and navigated through the empty club, which must have evacuated once everyone started hearing explosions outside.
“Where are we going?” Marl asked once they were back on the street.
Zank pondered the question for a moment. “Wherever we go, we need to take alleys. More of Dend’s goons will be congregatin’ here any minute now. We can set up in my apartment, let Venny rest there.”
Marl and Coal both nodded, not offering any better ideas of their own. Zank’s place was as good as any now that the scorpions were dealt with, as far as Coal was concerned. Or so he hoped.
The streets surrounding the Starlite were in a frenzy. Coal peered out at the main streets as the group ducked through the alleyways. People shoved past each other, screaming about an attack, trying to track down friends and loved ones. In reality, there had been very little damage done to any of the buildings, and as far as he knew the only casualties were the two bobcats. But the public didn’t know that, so maybe their bombastic reactions were justified.
While they walked, he looked out to the mountain range in the east. In the night, one could sometimes see the glowing eyes of some massive creature peering out over the tops of the mountains, gazing down into the valley below. The sight never failed to creep out Coal. Thankfully the skies were clear of unsettling eyes tonight.
They slipped from the entertainment district into Renning Heights. It was in a much calmer state than its neighboring district. The group snaked through neighborhoods until they reached the poorer side of the district where Zank lived.
His apartment was a four-story building called the Fairpaw. Its façade was a sky blue that had long since faded, never repainted since the building had first opened however many years before. Every unit was accessed from the outside, granting the complex more of a motel feel than the nicer apartment buildings found elsewhere throughout the city.
Zank’s unit faced an inner courtyard and was on the third floor. Marl, growing sore from the combination of the rooftop battle and carrying Venny for such a great distance, was lethargic in getting her up the stairs. They finally reached Zank’s front door, which he unlocked and slipped through quickly with the others close behind.
The apartment was small, consisting of a single bedroom, a bathroom, and a kitchen/living room area, which was where Coal had been sleeping for the past two weeks. It was sparsely decorated, only containing the bare essentials as far as furniture went, and hardly any decorations. There was a fake plant in one corner of the room, and a stack of albums with a record player in another. Most of Zank’s disposable income went toward outside entertainment rather than sprucing up his apartment.
Marl laid Venny down comfortably on the couch and confirmed there was nothing else he needed to do. He then took his leave, not before promising Zank he would avoid busy streets.
Coal sat at Zank’s kitchen table, adorned with a yellow tablecloth sporting myriad stains. He watched Venny sleeping across the room. Zank plopped himself down in a chair opposite Coal and asked him, “Want a drink now?”
“Hmm?” Coal mumbled, only half-listening. His mind was still up on that roof, staring down the robotic scorpions.
“You didn’t want one back in the club,” said Zank. “You want a celebratory one now?”
“Oh,” said Coal. “No, I’m fine. Thanks.”
Zank said nothing and did not get up to grab himself a drink. He remained at the table, tapping his nails on the dirty cloth.
They both watched Venny for a couple minutes. Coal didn’t know the woman at all, having not met her before tonight, but he was struck with guilt for getting her wrapped up in his mess.
“Well, that was fucked,” Zank finally said, letting out an awkward laugh.
“Yeah,” Coal agreed. He felt sick.
“I’m gonna have words with my source,” Zank said. “I thought we had somethin’ special. I didn’t think she would leave out somethin’ as important as gigantic robot bugs. I don’t even know how Dend got those. He’s gonna be fucking furious when he sees his roof and his office.”
Coal had to tell his friend. The guilt over Venny was gnawing at him.
He said meekly, “They weren’t with Dend.”
Zank, in spite of his utter exhaustion, perked up at this. “What do you mean? Who else would they be with?”
“Dend wouldn’t have access to tech like that,” said Coal. “HM-3s come straight from the Palace.”
The rabbit blinked, still not understanding.
Coal sighed. “They were after me,” he said. “Those were bounty hunters, and they wanted me.”
4
“WHAT ARE YOU TALKIN’ about?” Zank asked, furrowing his brow. His ears folded back in concern.
Coal bit his lower lip. He almost blurted everything out, but stopped short. His sharp ears flicked anxiously.
“I don’t wanna involve you,” he said. “It’s complicated.” He had instantly regretted mentioning anything at all. Zank was already assuming the scorpions belonged to Dend. Why did he contradict that?
Zank rolled his eyes. “You shouldn’t’ve said shit, then,” he said, echoing Coal’s own thoughts. “And let’s be real, man. You already got us involved. My best friend is passed out over there with an arm that might be fucked for life.”