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D4
overhanging branches. Thick vines hung in clusters, each heavily dotted with
different-colored flowers. Fruit festooned every branch, the grass littered
with rotting peels and chewed cores. A tiny squirrel leaped from a palm tree
ripe with coconuts, the limp body of a baby tarantula in its mouth. Birds were
singing in every tree, a python hissed at the passing cart and swarms of
insects parted before the horse cart and its occupants, closing behind them.
The companions began to feel as if they were riding a boat floating through a
serene green lake of tall rushes.
Then the berry-laden leaves of a tall bush abruptly parted and something
inhuman leaped out to dart across the road. Flinging itself airborne, the
thing landed on the horse and grabbed hold of the reins. Caught by surprise,
the horse whinnied at the attack and reared on its hind legs, trying to buck
off the animal. Still holding on to the reins, the mutie reached out to start
throttling the mare with its second pair of arms.
The humanoid creature resembled a silverback gorilla, the largest and most
powerful simian species in the predark world. Only this animal was a deep
chestnut brown, and its elongated fingers were tipped with tiny black talons.
In unison, Jak and Ryan fired their blasters, the heavy slugs slamming into
the huge beast less than a yard away. The mutie gorilla roared at the impacts,
but only small trickles of blood were oozing from the deep wounds.
Standing, Dean swung up the Weatherby, but his father was in the way, still
firing the Webley. Pounding its chest, the mutie released the trembling horse
and reached for the norms. Stoically, they kept firing, but even at
point-blank range their blasters were doing almost no damage.
"Try this!" J.B. shouted, squeezing between the men and triggering the
shotgun.
The pirate armory hadn't possessed any flechette rounds, but the double-aught
buckshot blew off an arm.
Howling in pain, pale fluid squirting from the ghastly wound, the mutie
abandoned the horse to dive at the companions. Dean, Doc, Ryan and J.B. fired
again while it was in midair, the triple blast throwing it to the dirt road.
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D4
"Giddyap!" Jak shouted, yanking the reins, and the wild-eyed horse started
galloping away at top speed.
Behind them, the gorilla rose and started giving chase in a peculiar loping
sprint.
Aiming for its belly, Dean tried a shot, but the moving cart made him miss.
Going to the rear of the cart, Krysty pulled the pin on a gren and dropped the
charge rather than throwing it. The metallic sphere bounced twice, then
violently erupted between the cart and the mutie, throwing up a cloud of
leaves and loose dirt.
Covered with fresh wounds, and still losing blood from its missing arm, the
creature fell, but still alive, it started crawling after the companions.
"Here!" Dean said, holding out his longblaster lengthwise.
Krysty grabbed the hot barrel, Mildred braced the Thompson on the stable
platform of the rifle and pounded the giant mutie with a spray of .45 rounds.
The barrage tore the creature apart and it finally dropped.
"Bastard mutie," Jak cursed, glancing briefly over a shoulder, then turning
back to pay attention to the road. Tree stumps and large rocks threatened to
smash the rattling cart apart. An instant too slow in a turn and they'd crash.
But the teenager refused to reduce their speed and drove on, whipping the
horse to go faster.
Miles flew beneath the shaking wheels, and another of the mutie gorillas
attacked the cart as it slowed to splash through a shallow creek. Ready this
time, Ryan fired a thundering round from the Webley directly into its snarling
mouth, blowing out the back of its head. Dripping brains, the creature fell
limply across the horse and almost got tangled in the reins before slipping
off to the ground.
The cart nearly toppled over as its wooden wheels jounced over the bulky
corpse.
"Now we know why they had the gate locked!" Krysty said, firing her S&W .38
at something unseen in the shadows of the jungle.
"Tropical paradise my ass," Mildred muttered, yanking out the exhausted clip
and slamming a fresh mag into the Thompson.
Tense hours passed as the cart raced through the lush greenery. A carpet of
vines
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Dobre pomysły nie mają przeszłości, mają tylko przyszłość. Robert Mallet
De minimis - o najmniejszych rzeczach.
Dobroć jest ważniejsza niż mądrość, a uznanie tej prawdy to pierwszy krok do mądrości. Theodore Isaac Rubin
Dobro to tylko to, co szlachetne, zło to tylko to, co haniebne.
Dla człowieka nie tylko świat otaczający jest zagadką; jest on nią sam dla siebie. I z obu tajemnic bardziej dręczącą wydaje się ta druga. Antoni Kępiński (1918-1972)
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