Flight Of Icarus: Showdown

Poppler sped to the top of the cliff in his tank and slammed on the brakes, hopping out before the vehicle even stopped. A dozen charr soldiers were gathered around two others dragging a blackened mess from the water. ‘GET AWAY FROM HIM!!’ the asura shouted at the two, leaping at one feet first and kicking him in the head, knocking him down and away, then pulling dual pistols and pointing them at the other charr, who dropped Grimpaw’s unmoving body and backed away.

‘Hey, you little rat, get away from that charr!’ a warrior yelled at him, drawing his greatsword and moving toward Poppler. The little engineer turned one pistol at the charr he kicked who stood, and the other pistol aimed at the warrior’s face. ‘Back off or you’re both dead!’ he barked, then dropped his rifle, flame, and net turrets. ‘Another step and I activate them!’ He quickly put his pistols away and felt for a pulse, then pulled out his medical bag and began applying medicines to the unmoving, but fortunately still breathing, body of Grimpaw.

Next he felt around on the charr engineer’s body for broken bones, and found two ribs and his left forearm out of place, then ordered a soldier to grab several sticks from the nearby wood while he searched his bag for bandages. ‘Hurry! We have to get him out of here and looked at by a proper doctor!’ The soldier came running back with them, then Poppler quickly snapped the bones back in place, hearing a slight moan from his friend indicating he was at least alive, then braced the arm and wrapped Grimpaw’s chest to tighten it up for the trip.

The centurion’s and other vehicles began to arrive at the scene, then they jumped out and ran toward the group of soldiers gathered around the burned charr and little asura. ‘GET AWAY FROM HIM YOU LITTLE RAT!!’ Grimcrotch bellowed, arm reaching back to grab his longbow.

Cliff top in Fireheart Rise, where Grimpaw landed after the rocket explosion

Poppler whipped out his pistols again and aimed them straight at the centurion’s head, replying ‘I’m not one of your meathead beasts here, centurion, I take orders from no one. You have two choices; you can either back off and let me help my friend here by getting him to a medic while he’s still alive, or I can shoot you in the face and activate these turrets, where none of you will live, including Grimpaw. It’s up to you.’ Grimcrotch stopped; he had never raged within himself this intensely before….

Staring daggers at the little engineer with his paw holding the longbow on his back, he said ‘Alright, everyone back off. Dinky and Shredskin, get over here with that stretcher and get Grimpaw on it, then take him to the Canton now. MOVE!’ The two ran over to Grimpaw and began placing him on the stretcher, all the while staring angrily at the asura, then rushed Grim to a tank and secured him, Dinky hopping inside and driving off with Elexus riding on top, holding the badly burned charr.

When the tank with his friend on the back took off toward the Citadel, Poppler dropped his pistols from aiming at the centurion and fell to his knees, head bowed, exhausted. Legionnaire Fyon the Wraith stepped toward the little engineer, kicked the turrets away and picked him up by his collar, holding him off the ground. ‘What do you wanna do with him, sir?’ The centurion replied while walking back to his tank, ‘Get him to the Citadel and lock him up.’

Fyon and Wrathclaw tied up the asura’s wrists and ankles, then the centurion’s friend tossed him over his shoulder and carried him away to another tank, where he was strapped down on top and rode for the entire trip back, bouncing and banging around on the hard iron body. Wrathclaw deliberately jumped the tank several times; when they arrived, they saw the asura had a large swollen spot and was bleeding from the back of his head.

——

Three weeks later a still injured & bandaged, and mostly hairless, Grimpaw, limped from Hero’s Canton to the Black Citadel prison with a little help from his legionnaire. They arrived to find a beaten, bruised and bloody, nearly naked asura sitting up in the far corner, nervously watching for the next round of beatings. ‘Poppler, what happened!?’ Grimpaw asked.

The asura focused on Grimpaw, a few seconds later recognizing him and trying to smile, ‘Hello, my friend. I’m glad to see you are ok.’

Grimpaw jerked his arm from Dinky’s grasp and went to the bars, ‘Who did this to you?’ Poppler looked around nervously, ‘I…I don’t know if I should say, it might happen again.’ Grimpaw turned around in a rage and grabbed his legionnaire by his collar with his one good arm, ‘WHO DID THIS TO HIM!?’ Dinky reached up and took Grim’s paw down, ‘Relax, engineer…’ Grimpaw turned slightly, then hurled his arm around with a balled up fist, hammering Dinky in the side of his head, knocking him out.

‘AAAGH!! By Light that hurt!’ Grimpaw yelled, shaking his paw. He went to the guard desk, removed the cell keys and went to his friend’s cage door then opened it. ‘Come on, Poppler, let’s go. No one is going to touch you any more I promise you that, my friend.’ Poppler stood as best he could and limped out, went to the desk and found his armor then put it on, and the two tried to help each other limp out of the cell area.

Poppler Swizzlestix, the only asura to stand alone against nineteen charr soldiers, and live

They went to Grimpaw’s shack on the war wagon prep deck and the charr opened a crate inside the door, took out his Slingshot and handed Poppler a pistol, then they slowly walked toward the city exit past the Canton just as centurion Grimcrotch came out and Dinky came running down from the Citadel behind them, rubbing the side of his head. ‘Grimpaw, where do you think you’re taking him?’ the centurion demanded.

Grimpaw reached back with his good arm grabbing his hand cannon and whipped around, aiming it straight at Grimcrotch’s face, silent. The standoff lasted several seconds, Poppler standing quietly at his friend’s side, pistol holstered and looking angrily at the centurion and legionnaire through his one unswollen open eye, then the two wounded warriors turned and limped out of the city, helping each other along….