Unicorn Riders - Pinch (English)

Chapter 19: The knife broad

By and by the other children reluctantly raised their heads and picked themselves up. "Pinch" took an examining look at the group. "Someone got hurt?"

All of them negated that. Even Jenny, still trembling, shook her head in a moment of bravery. Only Vanna looked around searching, with panic in her eyes. "Where is Butter?" she exclaimed frightened. "Where is he?"

A bark sounded as answer - Butter reacted instantly to his name being mentioned and came running. With hanging tongue and his tail waggling everywhere he stood between the children and had them pet him from all sides. "Pinch", too, tickled his shaggy fur gratefully. "I would have never found you without him" she explained. "He is a really good dog. But why did you call him Butter?"

Vanna laughed. "Because he is crazy about butter. Seriously! He comes running every time we only say the word, so we decided to name him that."

"Pinch" rose to her full size and took a scrutinizing look around at the landscape. It couldn't be very long before the mercenaries would arrive. Because if Strike Squad had really missed this giant red-yellow mushroom of fire vaporizing above the mountains just a minute ago, she would be greatly disappointed in "Whesty". But what would happen to the others? She looked around in the group and realized that the children stared at her attentively. Even Thor did that - he had apparently lost his leader act. Although it had been him who had led them out of the tunnels just in time.

"Pinch" sighed. "My people will be here in a minute. Whether you like it or not: You will be better off going with them. The times of seeking refuge here are over."

Thor stared at her and snorted. "Vanna was right: You have grown since you disappeared on us. At least you sound like a grown-up now." He took a glance at the destroyed tunnels, nothing more than piles of rubble now. "But I see it, too. Our hideout is gone anyway. And I'm just glad what we are still alive."

"That can be helped."

"Pinch" felt her teeth howl in protest when she heard that voice. That's all we need now! She turned around on the spot, staring at Sykes. The woman was standing at the top end of the hillside, a laser pistol ready in her hand, a mean smile on her face. "We were hoping for you in the tunnels to..." She interrupted herself when she saw "Pinch". A girl she had not left in the tunnels with the other prisoners. She didn't even seem to recognize her. "Who are you?"

The others stood next to "Pinch", scared frozen, not daring enough to move. But "Pinch" wasn't scared at all. She returned Sykes' astonished look with a face that showed pure, relentless wrath. That moment memories were flashing up in her head. The crash of the shuttle. The knife that Sykes had threatened her with. the rope being tied so tightly around her wrists that she believed her hands to fall off. Her constant threats and ugly comments. What she had done to the other children. The explosion of the bombs they had barely gotten away from. For all these cruel and nasty misdeeds were this woman's doing. "Pinch" felt anger burning inside her. Her right hand griped the handle of her laser weapon on her belt, and she felt her heart racing. Only this time it wasn't out of fear.

I'm free, she directed her thought towards Sykes, remembering that horrible night she had the woman to thank for. I'm prepared. And now, you witch, it is on!

With an angry cry she ripped the laser from her belt, took the safety catch off with her right thumb, aimed without any hesitation and fired.

The shot missed for miles. Still it was astonishingly effective. Sykes hadn't seen the weapon, and she had not even considered the possibility of such a young girl firing upon her. With a terrified shriek, almost identical to the squeal of a farm animal, the tattooed scoundrel dove for her life towards the next cover. She couldn't even return fire.