Welcome to Gaia! ::

((Lol))

I jump over you with my bike, rev the engine, and take the cookie.

*Takes a detour off road still with the cookie*

Moonlight lights the forest as I come to a clearing. Suddenly, a news bulletin interrupts Tom Petty’s “You Wreck Me”-

”...a citywide blockade has been established to capture the bandit who stole the...”

*click*

Not today Nei...”

Withdrawing my shotgun from the holster on the bike, I fire through the rusted shackles of the entrance gate into the old city aqueduct system, and increase my speed.

Riding through the city’s aqueduct system by moonlight, it almost seems like a clean sweep. That is- until the mechanical movement of the drones start to descend over the moon, and fire bullets at me to take me out.

I lean back at an angle on the bike, and skid to create a wave of small puddled water to throw the drones off. As they start to short-circuit, I aim my shotgun and shoot down three of them.

One finally gets in my point of view ahead, and tries to use its extraction arm to take the tucked away cookie & distract me on the bike, but I shoot it down also and ride the sloped sides of the aqueduct to where the water pipe leads out.

”It hasn’t rained in two months. They’ll be hard pressed to kick in the reserve tanks & flood me out without causing a political red-taped nightmare.”

I press on, accelerating the bike past fifty-five miles per hour.

Pulling out a box of shotgun shells, I ease up in the darkness, and come to a brief halt to reload.
I put the reloaded weapon back into the holster, and lean the motorcycle against the wall of the pipe. I walk over to the side and knock around for a hollow spot.
A piece of pipe slides back and a pair of eyes meet mine.

“Passphrase?” Says the eyes.
“There must be some kinda way outta here.” I say
“Said the joker to the fiend.”says the eyes.
The slot slides back, and I’m introduced to a bald man with a goatee and piercing eyes.
“Shadow!” He says. “I didn’t know your crazy a** was still in the game.”
“Well, you know how it is Marler.” I reply. “Everytime you try to get out, the more they try to pull you back in.”
”I’ve been listening to you over the underground. You’ve got this Nei fella pretty riled up. If she was anymore angry she’d have fire bursting from her eyes.”
“Then you know I need to get the hell out of the city.” I reply.
“I can arrange for safe transportation. The minute you clear this tunnel, I’ll call my associates and they’ll meet you and get you out.”
“Thanks Marler!”

Upon opening the door outside, I’m met with nearly a dozen Poison One Drones all sounding piercing alarms as loud as a train horn!!!

“GIVE UP!!! YOU ARE UNDER ARREST!!!”
I roll my eyes, grab my shotgun, flip it around, and c**k the shotgun aiming at the drones.
Step aside Shadow! says Marler, putting his cellphone away, and pulling out an AA12 automatic shotgun with a drum barrel.
He cocks it, and starts taking out the drones right and left.

”C’mon! Let’s get you the hell outta dodge!

I nod as we get on the bike, start it up, and start moving again pushing 75 mph in the tunnel.
Marler shooting Poison One drones.
Me driving and on standby for backup Calvary.
And all still with the cookie.

We exit the underground aqueduct system, and come near to a clearing. I switch clothes with Marler while the drones look for us, & have him act as the decoy. He also is given a mock cookie. His associates meanwhile, lead me to a clearing where there’s a hot air balloon tied down & ready to go.

Marler drives the motorcycle, dressed as me and shoots down Poison One. I get into the balloon and take off into the night sky.

I watch as the rescue team goes after Marler dressed on the bike as me who’s now speeding through the countryside in the moonlight. I watch him cruise by. A Helicopter and two SWAT Units are called in now as well as all available law enforcement units & more drones. I listen on the CB Radio to the police as they chase him.

And meanwhile, I’m getting away in a hot air balloon with no heat whatsoever. Almost forgotten high above the clouds.

((Earlier....

“YOU WHAT?!” asked Marler.
”It’s the best way and you know it!”
”Helping you is one thing man. Leading every known police force in five counties outside of the army & including INTERPOL away from you as a decoy is another!
”Whatever you have in your bag of tricks better be good to make me-
”I, Shadow, do cash in & invoke the full power of this token that this favor be returned from an earlier service I have once done for you.”
”Damn You!” said Marler, realizing that he has to do it now.
”All you have to do is to drive a motorcycle away from me, and if attacked, shoot them down with this-“
”You better not be handing me that puny-“
I hand him the puny shotgun. He looks like a lion about to spring on its prey.
”Play as dumb as you’d like if you get caught. And if they ask you why you were firing at them, you can tell them they were firing at you first.
He swipes my shotgun, and I take his. I also give him five gold talents for his service. He eases up a bit, since the task matches the payment well.
”You owe me BIG for this!”
I nod at him. ”I wish it didn’t have to come to this, that I could’ve used that favor for something else, but it did.”
))

With the cookie still in my hands, I reflect a little more on all the craziness that has happened so far this night, and steer the balloon beyond county lines.

I steer the balloon.

“The sun’ll be up soon. I’ll be a sitting duck once they catch Marler. Having Mumsy on my scent won’t fly well either.”

High above the clouds, the sky is a work of art. Not quite daybreak, but the sky is also starting to turn a cold indigo color.

I land the balloon in a used car lot at daybreak, take the bus to a motel, check into a room, and stash the cookie before resting. My notoriety hasn’t reached out this way yet.