Higgs & Soap: Galaxy Delivery

Chapter 15

The last thing Higgs saw was Fred/Rick disappearing round the bend.

The next thing Higgs saw was Fred/Rick reappearing round the bend.

"There he is Barty, stop him!"

Barty and his men formed a line, pointing their guns at the thief.

"Right, stowaway, you stop right there or you'll discover why we have a reputation as the hardest security staff this side of the galaxy."

Fred/Rick just shook his head as he ran at them. "Trust me, I'm running from worse," he shouted as he suddenly veered to one side, leapt onto a table and vaulted over the line.

"Hey! Nobody does that to a Morley Station officer!"

Barty and his men began to give chase as Higgs mulled over his words, "Running from worse?"

As he looked back down the ring, four very angry Grey Dragons appeared.

"Oh no... eyes front Barty!"

Barty spun round. "Oi! How many times do I have to tell you guys? You lot are banned from this station until you pay for that automatic toilet you broke..."

The Dragons pulled out extending blades and small curved metal objects that created umbrella-like energy shields at the flick of a switch.

"Men, behind us! Weapons free!"

Higgs dodged round them as the security line turned and started firing. The Dragons ducked behind tables as energy blasts exploded around them. One caught one on his energy shield and knocked it out of his hand. The glasses Dragon pressed a button on the side of his blade handle and small section of blade fired off and buried itself in the leg of one of Barty's men.

"Get to cover!" shouted Barty as energy blasts and blade projectiles sparked off the walls and floor.

Higgs tried to block out the chaos behind him as he saw the back of Fred/Rick disappearing the other way round the ring as terrified onlookers dropped to the floor.

"Not this time you don't!" he said and ran after him.

***

Soap was walking out of the Fresh Enough store with a few more tins of Chewna-Chunx when she heard the gunfire from the other side of the ring.

"Oop, sounds like it's on."

She dropped the bag and jogged round the outside of the top floor towards the noise, as people ran for their lives in the opposite direction. It was then she spotted a tall figure in a long black coat in front of her, slowly walking through the flow of panicked shoppers. She could smell nothing about him at all. This guy was heavily genetically modified.

"Well, well Mr Fred/Rick, let's see where you're going," she said, following him.

***

Higgs was no athlete, and he knew that any attempt at chasing anyone was never going to end as intended, but this was his livelihood getting away. This was his job going down the VacuFlush. He had to at least make it look convincing so he could claim the danger fee from the client. Much to his surprise, he didn't have to run for long to catch up with Fred/Rick. He was standing still in the middle of the ring.

"A-ha! I have you now mister master thief!"

Fred/Rick spun round. "Who the hell have you scoofed off man?" he screamed, then ran sideways through the staff doors into the corridor where Higgs had gone over the plan with Barty.

Just in front of Higgs now stood six muscular thugs, bald but for a single line of hair going diagonally from one ear over the top of their heads. The largest one pointed at Higgs. "Him!" he said as they drew their guns.