Advent Of A Gunslinger

Up above the saloon…

“...And that’s how we’ll get through with minimal casualties and Rongu in one piece. Any questions?” With Mio’s plan fully laid out to the agents and Spitha, he waited to hear their responses.

“No issues here,” Tabitha said.

“I’m ready to go on your mark,” Baretta added.

Leona looked over at the vent that was located on top of the saloon. “You’re certain this won’t cause any excess injuries to civilians?”

“Absolutely,” the tom replied, “Nobody is located in the left-rear side of the building. That’s the supply room which contains flammable objects.”

Spitha took a step towards that part of the roof. “...I think I understand, but are you sure it won’t cause too much damage?”

“I’m certain. Everyone will be evacuated as they try to fix it. This will enable us to enter from the rear of the building, and finish out the rest of the operation. Does that make sense?”

Once she took a moment to process what Mio had said, Spitha agreed. “Alright. I’m prepared to follow you.”

“Good,” he held the stick of dynamite up. “Gimme a light, ma’am.”

Down in the mines beneath the saloon…

Rongu had finally dried his tears and came to his senses in the main room that led to the mines. “She’s wrong...I don’t care what the bitch says. Spitha will accept me back. If not, then she’s of no use to me…I have no time for followers who aren’t loyal.”

BOOM!

Suddenly, a loud explosion occurred from above, followed by a series of rumbles that shook the walls and caused rocks to fall down from the sides of the mine. At first glance, it almost sounded like an earthquake. But the origin was not from below…

“What the…?!” Rongu looked up. That was the direction the noise came from. So he quickly ran towards the lift to take him up to his office that connected to the rest of the saloon. “What the hell is going on?!”

He was about to find out. Once he got there, and left his office, he could see the saloon’s patrons storming out of the building as fast as they possibly could. The smell of smoke and char had filled the air, meaning only one thing…

“FIRE!” one of the Klugetowner’s shouted along with the crowd as they left the building.

“What?!” Rongu walked into the saloon, past the gambling tables and towards the other end of the building where piles of smoke and flames could be seen. “Dammit! Who burned something back there?! If any of you were smoking, I’m gonna have your asses!”

Up top…

Once the fire was started, the dragon and the abyssinians all dropped down to the rear end of the building. Everything was going as intended thus far, with many of the employees working to put out the fire.

From there, Mio would lead the group inside and sneak them into the mines. “This way, everyone,” he commanded as he drew his gun. “Be ready for anything.”

As soon as they all stepped inside, Leona started to recall the white, hospital-esque hallways. “...I remember this area. It’s near where Mona and I used to perform our reconnaissance. The mines shouldn’t be too far from here.”

Tabs and Baretta both took point with their weapons raised to make sure their path was clear.

“Nothing here,” Tabs relayed to them, “Left side is clear.”

“Right side is clear. What’s our orders?” Baretta glanced over her shoulder in Mio’s direction.

The tom took a few steps forward, and sniffed the air. “Hm...I’ve been here long enough to know the smell of raw Aion-ore. We’re getting closer.”

Mio led them through the medical array, and past the various torture rooms. Eventually, they’d be deep enough to find another lift and used it to take them down further until they reached the mines.

That is, until they had some expecting hosts waiting for them at the bottom.

As soon as the lift came to a stop, various nurse she-cats would be waiting for them with syringes, scalpels, bonesaws, and other various medical tools raised and prepared to use as melee weapons.

“Aw, shit…” Mio muttered as he aimed his gun, “We’ve got company.”

“You were smart enough to trick Rongu, I’ll give ya that,” the tallest nurse in front said--a panther-like she-cat with a shotgun aimed at them, “But we thought ahead. You didn’t think we’d let you waltz down here and bring us down so easily, did you?”

“Son of a--” Baretta hissed, “We don’t got no time for this. We need’da plow through ‘em as fast as possible.”

Leona drew her own medical weaponry--a syringe-shooting rifle. “I can handle this no problem. If any of you get hurt, I’ll be here.”

“What’s the plan, boss?” Tabs said as she aimed her revolvers at the hostile nurses.

Spitha’s draconian eyes gauged the situation, planning out her first move to herself. “Go ahead. Pull that trigger and see what happens.”

And Mio himself? The tom had an oddly surefire smile on his face for what looked to be a situational disadvantage. It was as if he had been expecting this. “You girls like card tricks?” he drew one from within his suit--a Queen of Diamonds that depicted Bombay’s head profile on both ends--reversing into each other.

It was so out of left field, that the nurse in front was confused for a split-second on how he reacted. “...Eh?”

FWIP!

As soon as she was caught off-guard, he flung the card in her direction. Despite its standard, cardly appearance, it was sharp enough to cut through skin!

“RRRER!” The nurse hissed and dropped her weapon as soon as she was cut. Which prompted everyone to engage in combat.

SHING!

In response, various scalpels were flung straight for Mio, but were stopped as soon as Spitha stepped in the way.

PLONK!

The medical knives harmlessly bounced off of her wings like twigs. She then spread her wings and took off, grabbing the front nurse by the face in her claw and dragging her along the ground to the other side of the room.

To the left, Tabs put her feline agility to use and dodged the various pieces of sharp medical equipment thrown at her. But the enemy was just as nimble, dodging every bullet she fired off.

Baretta went for a more personal approach as she holstered her weapon and bent down. Once she was on all fours, she scampered off and pounced on one of the nurses. The ensuing catfight was littered with scratching, hissing, and clawing from both.

Leona had leapt over the others and stabbed one with a needle, injecting her until she passed out. She then turned to another and kicked the bonesaw out of the nurse’s paws, and shot her point-blank with her syringe-shooting rifle, putting her down instantly. “Mio! Go find Rongu and bring him out to us! We got these varmints!”

While everyone was engaged in combat against the nurses, Mio followed Leona’s suggestion and scurried away from the area. Granted, he knew he had no chance when it came to fighting Rongu alone, so he already had a plan for that as well. “His fortitude outpaces his wit. He won’t stand a chance.”

But as the tom walked towards the lift that led back up to the restaurant, he heard a voice from a nearby room. “Hey! Is anyone out there?! Hello!”

“...Wha?” His ear twitched in the direction of the voice. Mio rushed over and entered the room to find the lizard woman on the floor, bound by chains and bleeding from lacerations. “...Who did this to you?! Don’t worry, we’ll get you out…” he knelt down next to her.

“That yellow-bellied asshole, Rongu! He raped me and struck me with a whip just because I didn’t know where Spitha was!” the lizard woman hissed, “If I wasn’t restrained I’d...ngh...ach…” she winced, shutting her eyes tightly as Mio picked her up. “Ow...owwww! Shit that hurts...”

Mio’s blood started to boil as he flicked his tail. The fact that the dragon man was willing to stoop so low to achieve his desires disgusted him to his core. He let out a low, growling purr as he left the room with the lizard scooped up in his paws. “Don’t worry. I have a medical professional with me that can take care of those wounds.”

“Really? Thank you…”

“Not a problem, miss,” Mio replied. “Once we get the info we need...I’m going to claw that dragon’s head off.”