Solace & Taproots

1.10

Bex yanked her left hand rearward. The short barreled shotgun roared and blazed, and she felt the heat wash back over her hand just as the recoil leapt against her poor grip and stung her finger where the lower part of the trigger guard slapped against it. She cried out, but even if it broke, she had the better part of the situation. 12-gauge buckshot at less than ten feet flayed Rogelio's right thigh, absolutely taking his femoral artery with it and probably fracturing the femur for good measure.

Wrestling with the recoil, she used its force to jam the shoulder stock where it should go, if perhaps harder than usual. She didn't care if it bruised through her gear as she hauled back on the pistol grip with her right hand to snug the gun up like she'd been taught, lifted the muzzle towards his chest, and squeezed off a single shot. Without registering the effects, she snapped her aim to the shadowy companion in the hallway and put a double-tap into the center of his torso. This, as a wave of white linear clouds puffed into a horizontal plane at chest height, starting about eight feet in front of her and continuing several past her target in the hallway. Where they intersected with a human body, gouts of blood erupted towards and splattered the walls on the left side of the room and hallway.

Bex couldn't hear it over the deafening ringing in her ears, but when Rhonda stepped halfway into the room with the P90 extended in her right hand and the M249 balanced on her left hip, she heard her friend mumble as she sank to the floor, "I was on financial aid, you fuckpuddle."

**

Bex knelt on the floor, gun half-dangling by its sling, her left hand curled towards her chest, and right hand reaching across to cling to her unprotected left ear. She sighed as Ronnie unclipped the LMG and knelt, touching her cheek lightly. Ronnie's gloved hand gently moved forward so her palm maintained the comforting contact and her fingers could fish the earpiece from Bex's right ear.

"Hey, kiddo.. just hold still for a sec and breathe, let me have a look at you." Her friend's right hand seemed okay... so Ronnie gently moved it aside and pressed the P90 into it. "We dunno who else heard all that, so you watch that back hallway past me, okay? It'll be easier to one-hand than yours."

When Ronnie's hand left Bex's face, her cheek felt cool briefly from its absence. Ronnie gently uncurled her winglady's left arm away from her chest and cradled it in both of her hands, cupped like she was carrying water. Bex only gasped and flinched when Ronnie touched the side of her ring finger nearest her middle digit. Brushing along the outer and back sides didn't elicit any signs of additional pain. "Okay, honey. I don't think it's broken. Probably gonna be a weird bruise though. I wish this place had power, I might be able to find some ice, but all we have is the single-use one in the medkit. If you were back on that college v-ball court I'd whip it right out, but... since Walgreens is closed right now, y'think you can do without?"

That got a chuckle. Bex hadn't heard that particular euphemism for the collapse of western civilization yet. "Nah, I'll manage. The team from G-W's given me way worse. Normally I'd buddy tape it, but..."

"Yeah, even if we could buy more tomorrow, it'd be tricky with your glove. But you let mama Ronnie take care of this for you..."

"Okay, Sarge. I'm not in much shape to protest."

"Like that's ever done you any good." Ronnie smirked as she fished a length of paracord from a leg pocket. It seemed the military considered that stuff second only to duct tape in usefulness, and Bex wasn't surprised to see Ronnie had some as she slipped a basic loop knot over Bex's middle finger, followed by a couple of wraps around just that finger as a spacer, and then wrapped the two fingers together. Snug enough to keep them parallel, but not enough to impede blood flow. The leftover line ran down the back of Bex's hand and tucked into the elastic at her glove's wrist. "Don't worry, if we meet any more assholes, I'll flip them off for you." Another chuckle was a good sign — it meant Bex wasn't getting overwhelmed by shock for now. "How's that ear?"