"I've got an idea, Professor. You ain't gonna like it, but it's the best I've got."
"Do enlighten me."
"No enlightenment. Leave. Both of you. Right now. I'll deal with this thing."
"It wants to kill you," Ashley said. Jericho did not miss that she had stopped referring to the golem as 'he'.
"Reckon that's true. Fact is, it may. It'll play hell trying to fix itself, though. All goes well and y'all can come back here in a few days and he'll be like an old train with no coal. Now get!"
He turned his back on the pair and started rummaging through the supplies they had placed outside the laboratory. When he stood back up, he was unsurprised to see the two of them still gathering their equipment. He turned and showed them what he held in his hands. A ball some four inches in diameter, made up of the Professor's enhanced nitroglycerine with magnets embedded in it.
Ashley's eyes were wide. She ripped off the mask she wore. "What are you going to do with that?" she demanded.
"Kill me a golem."
"That's my father's life's work!" she shouted, reaching out as if to grab the speckled gray ball from him. He pulled it from her reach.
"It is," he agreed. "And here in a minute it's gonna be scrap."
Ignoring her leap for his hand, he spun on a heel to leave.
"How will you get it where you want it?" Musgrave asked.
"I'm gonna throw it. The magnets will make it stick."
"And you will then somehow get far enough away to save yourself from the explosion?"
Jericho grinned. "I got feet. Figure I can run pretty hard."
"He will shoot you before that, certainly."
"Might at that. Still, gotta try."
"No, you do not. The golem is my responsibility. Let me do it. I will reattach the boiler and place it on his back."
"Father, no!" Ashley shouted.
Musgrave shook his head, looking past Jericho. "He comes. I would imagine he will still be rather cross with you, Mister Sims, and will be unlikely to be inclined to negotiate. It would be best if you ride away now. Circle back and destroy him once I have finished and he is leaving. Ashley, go with him."
She began to protest but he wheeled on her and the look on his face made it clear he would brook no argument. He gripped her thin arm and pushed her toward the gunfighter. Jericho caught her and spoke soothingly as he guided her to where Gideon waited. The golem was now within rifle range and still coming. At this distance Jericho could see that it was indeed supporting the weight of the boiler unit with one hand. The right hand was lifted like the point of a spear to aim at him and he knew as soon as the creature felt confident it would begin firing. He hefted Ashley onto the saddle and leaped onto the horse behind her.
"Go, Gideon," he shouted, pulling the reins hard to the left. Gideon complied, kicking hard against the ground and galloping away from the home. Behind them a trio of rounds banged out from the golem as it took a chance on a random hit.
Jericho rode hard for a couple of minutes, glancing occasionally over his shoulder. When they passed out of line of sight of the laboratory, he turned Gideon, continuing their flight but in a circle back to the home. Ashley spat ineffectual curses at him, demanding he return to the house so that she might be with her father.
He maneuvered Gideon through a rocky outcrop and between still more trees, making a long circuit and emerging on the back side of the property. He wrapped a hand around Ashley's mouth to silence her fresh complaints.
"Let me listen," he whispered into her ear. She obliged, nodding her head enough that he disengaged his hand. For a moment, all he could hear was Gideon panting. As he came to the decision that it was time to sneak a look around the corner, he heard Musgrave shout. The words themselves were garbled by distance, but the tone was clear. He dismounted and grabbed the Winchester, smacking Gideon on the haunches with the heel of his hand. The horse whinnied and took off at a hard trot away from the house. Ashley clung to his powerful neck as he did so, taking her farther from the event.
Jericho ran hard to the edge of the house, poking his head around the frame to take in the scene. Musgrave was backing away from the golem, which was advancing on him with a slow, measured tread. Musgrave had provided, as he had described to Jericho, some measure of repair. The boiler was now properly poised on its back and held in place with a metal clamp. It was an expedient at best, allowing it to function while awaiting a fresh weld. To Jericho's delight, situated in the middle of the metal clamp, directly atop the boiler, was the bomb he had left with the Professor.
Musgrave pointed toward the ruined laboratory, shaking his head in the negative as he spoke. Jericho wished he could hear what was being said. When the golem snapped open a hatch on its heavy right arm and gestured at it with the left hand, he figured he knew what it was demanding. Rockets or ammunition, to replace the supply it had used trying to kill Jericho. Musgrave made a show of pointing at the items they had salvaged. His voice raised again, and Jericho made out the words, "don't have any".
The golem was apparently unsatisfied with his answer. It pointed the firearm gauntlet at him, but Musgrave stood his ground, shaking his head and continuing to gesture at the pile of equipment. The heavy right arm cocked back and swung forward, knocking Musgrave to the ground. Ignoring him, the golem stepped into the laboratory. Jericho started walking toward them, but Musgrave waved him back with a frantic flap of his hands before jumping up from the ground and taking off at a run away from Jericho. A moment later the golem emerged from the laboratory, raising his arm. A single shot barked from the repeating pistol, kicking up dirt beside and just ahead of the fleeing Professor. Musgrave leaped and changed his direction, guiding a bit to his left but otherwise ignoring the warning shot and still running.
Jericho dropped to a seated position on the ground, using his knee to support his arm as he aimed the Winchester. He took in a deep breath and started a slow exhalation, keeping his eye focused across the sight of the rifle. His finger gently took up position in the trigger. In his mind, he was screaming at Musgrave to run faster. He needed to be farther from the golem to be safe, but if he didn't hurry, the creature was going to shred him with the repeater.
Fire spat from the gauntlet and Musgrave stumbled as two rounds hit his back and one hit his thigh just below his right buttock. His scream was lost to Jericho as the Winchester barked and jumped with recoil. A heartbeat later the world before him vanished in a cloud of smoke and fire. A wave of concussive force spread outward in a ring that flattened grass even as the explosion thundered and reverberated from every nearby object. Glittering bits of metal flew in all directions, borne on the blast. Jericho scrambled to his feet and leaped behind the house as cover.
Once everything had fallen back to earth he ran toward the last known position of the Professor. The blast had left a crater in the earth and he skirted it, his boots sliding in the loose soil. When he reached Musgrave, Jericho hissed in a breath through gritted teeth as he looked down. He knelt and rolled the Professor over, looking at the wide-open eyes that stared back at him, grimacing as he realized what he was going to have to tell Ashley.
The notification went about as well as he had expected. After she slapped him for sending her away before the final part of the fight, he told her the truth about her father. She screamed, burst into tears, slapped him again, and then slapped him a third time. She drew back for a fourth, spitting curses at Jericho, but he grabbed her wrist and held it in a steely grasp until her strength faltered. Tears ran freely down her face as she glared at him.
"I'll see you in Hell for this," she swore. "You killed my father and I won't rest until I repay you."
He walked away and climbed into the saddle, tipping his hat in deference to her, despite her angry shouts. He turned Gideon and began a slow walk away from the house, retrieving his flask from the saddlebag and taking a long drink of the whiskey as he pointed Gideon south. Somewhere out there the world was a little less odd, and he hoped if he rode long enough he
would find that part.
"I'm not through with you, Jericho Sims!" Ashley screamed behind him. "I'll find you, wherever you go, and you're going to regret the day you came here!"
"Way ahead of you," he muttered into the wind.
END
Thank you for reading this story. If you enjoyed it, I hope you'll drop me a review at the retailer where you purchased your copy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
T. Mike McCurley lives in a small city in Oklahoma, where indeed, “the wind comes sweeping” and all that. He began writing superhero prose on a whim one day, and found it enjoyable enough to continue. His short stories soon formed the backbone of what became known as the world of The Emergence, describing events and players in a world of metahumanity that began in 1963 and has continued to grow since. From there came the stories of the metahuman cop known as Firedrake, which has now filled three books, with a fourth in the works. He is a founding member of the Pen and Cape Society, an online cabal of authors of superhero prose, and his Emergence setting will soon be featured in Lester Smith’s D6xD6 roleplaying game.
In another (non-writing) life he has been a radiological monitor, an emergency medical technician, a private investigator, a videographer, a certified GLOCK armorer, and a dozen other things too varied and goofy to list in one space together.
His works can be found linked at www.tmikemccurley.com and at the Pen and Cape Society, www.penandcapesociety.com .
Also available from the author:
Firedrake Volume One: Meet Francis Drake – your average seven foot dragon cop with an attitude, sent to hunt down the worst of the metahumans known as geneboosters. Drake is the one the government calls to do the jobs no one else wants, and he’ll keep on doing them because every mission completed means more time spent with his brother, a booster in his own right — but in government custody. Follow along as he battles criminals, meets legends, and pisses off his boss in spectacular style.
Firedrake Volume Two: Drake returns to service in this second volume, standing beside the legendary Patriot to crush a riot at the annual Lady Justice Day parade, fight the racist members of Humanity First, and become a television star. Since nothing good can happen to Drake without the universe kicking him, a metahuman brawler places a worldwide bounty of Drake’s head, and the worst of the worst are out to collect! A trip to a shopping mall proves problematic when you’re a dragon, as our hero finds out.
Firedrake Volume Three: Anger management classes for Drake? That's part of the punishment when Drake finds himself in legal trouble after taking Soundstage on a trip to recover wanted fugitives. What will happen when the new "kinder, gentler" Drake returns to his job just in time for an attack on the safehouse where his brother lives?
Tales of the Emergence: An anthology of short stories set in the world of Emergence. An indestructible man who fears only his own hidden nature. An angst-ridden teen is handed the power of a god. A street cop learns what it means to be part of the team that responds to booster crimes. A night in the life of a boosted kid who wants to be a comic-book hero and encounters more than he expects.
The Good Fight: A free anthology of superhero fiction by the fine men and women of the Pen and Cape Society – of which I am a proud member. Contains an all-new Firedrake short story!
The Good Fight 2: Villains: A new anthology from the men and women of the Pen and Cape Society. This one is for charity: James Hudnall, long-time comic author, is battling some issues, and the PCS has banded together to show that even Villains can help a good cause! Contains the origin of Professor Pain!
Deep Space Mine: The horrors of global genocide witnessed by the occupants of a space station. Short and sweet, suited for a quick reading fix.
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Golem: A Jericho Sims tale (The Adventures of Jericho Sims Book 1) Page 3
