Part the seventh

Mel is waiting for him outside when Bonky has finished, she gives him a little grin and Bonky gives her the thumbs up sign, triggering the GASH fist as he does so. The blades spring out and take a healthy chunk out of the grubby wall next to Bonky: he hastily retracts them and wonders why Mel is snickering. She sobers up quickly, however, and they ride the lift down to the ground floor in silence, Mel chambering rounds into her MAL Blitzer as they go. Bonky wonders at how such a little woman can handle such a large gun and thought originally maybe they sold her a pretend version so that it wouldn’t hurt the Ebon. The woman’s slight frame certainly looks out of proportion in comparison to the hand-cannon revolver but she loads the pistol seemingly unconcerned at the disparity between its size and her own mass.

“Um, Mel?”

“Yes?”

“Um, could I, er...”

“No Bonky.”

“Oh.”

“...”

“Just a couple of shots?”

“Sorry B, you know how much these things cost? And that’s not even counting the ammo. You’ll just have to save up for one like I did. Sorry.”

This has also become something of a habit between the two of them, the friendly bickering setting them up for the day ahead. Both know that the gun ’s first kill was in the hands of the Stormer, who snatched it from Mel’s battered body and fired it point blank into a rabid, snarling pig during a job in DownTown. There wasn’t much of it left, and after that Mel has been in the zone and has not needed bailing out again. She checks the loadout one last time, flicks the safety on and blows into the barrel for luck. Bonky wishes she wouldn’t do this, and he reminds her it is Against Basic Safety Precautions. Mel just rolls her eyes and snicks the gun into place at her waist. Idly patting Bonky’s shoulder plate, she fishes in a nylon shoulderbag for a speedloader and starts filling it, whistling something slightly ethereal as she does so.

The lift ‘dings’ as it reaches the ground floor and disgorges an eager Stormer and a fully loaded Ebon. They make their way out of the building and start back the way they came earlier on. Mel bristles slightly as she leaves the building, but Bonky pays her little attention. She often reacts in a funny way to things he would swear aren’t there, says there are things she can smell sometimes. Well, Bonky can smell things sometimes as well, only most often they are fast food products.

Maybe its those kids, Bonky realises the children he saw from Jen’s window are looking their way now. Although he can’t see quite why they would bother Mel, an Operative currently carrying a rather large, obvious and exclusive designer firearm. Bonky sighs, softly. Ebons. Mel gives him the look that means ‘back me up’ and sets off towards the kids at a trot. Bonky sticks a few metres behind her and keeps up easily, scanning the surrounding blocks for threats. The kids are playing in a square made of high-sided residential apartment blocks, exits at each corner. And of course into the buildings themselves. Bonky eases up as Mel reaches the kids: there are six of them, one of whom looks worried: the rest are trying not to laugh and not having much success.

Bonky watches as Mel starts talking to the biggest one, puts a sisterly arm around his shoulder and explains something in a tone of voice that Bonky recognises as ‘not-angry-but-not-best-pleased-either’. Bonky winces. He knows that tone well. He also sees that she has arranged her fingers in a ‘no threat’ sign on the kid’s shoulder and Bonky relaxes slightly, turning his attention to the other children.They have backed off slightly and are tossing something to each other, gradually regaining their earlier exuberance. Then Mel stops talking to the kid, who walks over to the others and snatches away the ball they have been throwing to each other. He barks something at them and they shut up abruptly, then follow him as he leads off directly away from Mel and Bonky. Mel watches them go for a moment, then rejoins the Stormer and his armoured back.

“No probs, B.”

“What did you say?”

“Oh, just that I have a couple of friends in the department of pest control.”

Bonky thinks for a moment. He hasn’t heard of any such department, but that might not mean that one doesn’t exist. Also, the termination of minors involves a lot of paperwork and Mel hates paperwork. She isn’t that keen on killing kids, either. This leads Bonky to conclude that Mel has been making a joke. He laughs appreciatively and slaps her once on the back. He feels Mel’s DeathSuit stiffen to absorb the blow and checks to make sure she is OK. Mel staggers a little but gives a thumbs-up sign as they leave the square.

Plip.

Something has hit Bonky’s helmet, apart from the rain. He looks down, sees a small, blue object. Simultaneously bends down, pushes Mel as hard as he can, picks up the thing, throws it as hard as he can away, towards the middle of the square.

“Grenade.”

His voice is clipped, certain, over the com. He hunches over, turns his back to the blast zone, waits.

Waits some more.

Head up, Mel’s already up, scanning the area, looking, tiny lights dancing around the eyeplates of her helmet. “Must’ve been a dud” she mutters. Then she stops, starts once and relaxes visibly. Bonky gets up, checks his armour ’s HUD, checks the GASH blade’s readout, moves over to Mel. Who starts walking towards where Bonky threw the dud grenade. He suggests that perhaps this is not the wisest of tactical decisions but is cut off by Mel’s abrupt “Trust me” over the com.

They reach the dud a couple of moments later, Bonky calculating how long it would take him to throw Mel aside and cover the greande himself, but Mel seems unconcerned, nonchalant even as they approach the thing. Then, unbelievably, she picks it up and starts tossing it in her hand! Bonky is unsure quite what has come over his friend, and thinks for a moment about patching a call through to Jacinta to say that Mel is sick today and can’t come to work.

“Take a closer look, B” she says, with a smile in her voice. She tosses Bonky the dud grenade, which he realises is in fact the ball the kids ahd been throwing about earlier. Bonky feels quite silly. He is a bio-engineered combat machine, and had thought a child’s toy was dangerous. Still, he thinks, people have made the same mistake about the FEN 603 he has had to bring with him today.

Something does catch his eye, however: faded writing on the ball. Probably one of the boys’ names – it says something-H-something-E-S-something-E-R. Bonky shrugs, expressive even through his armour, and hands the ball back to Mel, who stows it absent-mindedly in her shoulder bag. Her voice sounds bright over the com. “Come on, B, we’ve got some sewers to clean!”

Bonky sighs once and follows the Ebon’s lead, falling into step behind her as they finally leave the small plaza.

Mel is very restrained on the way to the meeting. She only yells “Duck!” over the intercom three times, and only one of those in a place where anyone else can see. But Bonky knows she’s only joking, so he slaps her back heartily each time and they’re quits.

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