Lucy's shoulder was in agony. Thankfully, she was reasonably sure it was just dislocated, not broken, but without a medic to treat it, the distinction was irrelevant.

Charlotte's new body walked over. The face had an eerily familiar feel, giving Lucy the feeling that it had been somewhat modeled after Alice's face. She'd have to have words with Charlotte about that later.

For now, though, Charlotte simply examined her before speaking. "It would appear the bone in your shoulder has been forcefully removed from its socket."

Lucy grimaced as she tried to ignore the pain. "Yeah, tell me something I don't know!"

Charlotte bent closer. "I could reposition it back where it belongs if you'd like."

It was tempting, but... "I'm not sure you should. If you move the shoulder wrong when it's like this, you could cause significant damage, making it worse than it is now."

Charlotte nodded. "Yes. I have studied human anatomy... extensively, and I believe I could fix it with minimal damage to your musculature or frame. Though Ideally, it would be done over a few minutes, given our current situation, I could perform a more rapid procedure that might hurt more in the short term but should cause no more long-lasting damage than you were already likely to experience. Either way, you should decide quickly."

Listening to the fighting still happening in the room, Lucy had to acknowledge the point. "Fine, just do it."

Charlotte nodded and grasped her arm. "Now, please, relax your shoulder as much as you can..."

How the hell do you relax..? Suddenly, Charlotte pulled the arm out, which definitely hurt, but then it settled back into place, and the pain faded rapidly.

Charlotte bent over and picked up the offending rifle without bothering with a secondary shoulder examination. "Given the fragility of your frame, perhaps it is best I wield this weapon for now."

Lucy shook her head. "That's not something you can just pick up and use. You've never shot a gun before. It takes training."

Charlotte raised the gun and took a firing stance. "I have observed yourself and the other pirates using this weapon repeatedly, and I believe I have the concept down. When I pull this metallic slide, the projectile will fire, correct?"

Given that Charlotte had eight legs, her stance was good, and she held the gun snugly against her shoulder. Lucy relented. "Yes, but there's only two shots left in that rifle, so make them count."

Charlotte lowered the rifle and nodded. "Of course. Now, let us go. I'm not sure my other appendages can hold them much longer."

Lucy searched the pirate's body, briefly stopping to stare at his face. He looked familiar for some reason... She shook her head. That didn't matter right now. Then she saw what she was looking for on his belt and grinned. This she could work with!

-

Hugo was running. Well, running might be a bit generous for all the effect his slogging through the mud had. His rifle was out of ammo, and he wasn't about to hang around any longer. The pirate didn't care if the boss was able to kill the big one. He didn't want anything more to do with this place!

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

During all the shooting, Hugo saw one of those fake doors get punctured and figured the best place to retreat to was the place the enemy hadn't planned on him going. He was about to make it through the opening when a shot rang out. Hugo wondered if Johnson had returned to the fight for a split moment, but as he was propelled onto the floor of the room he'd been running to, he remembered that Johnson hadn't had that kind of rifle.

-

Scott and Alice were stunned as the man in a battle suit came flying into their room, his handgun spinning across the floor as the pirate fell. Scott wondered if the pirate was dead, but the groans and movement indicated otherwise.

Alice was so shocked she didn't protest when Scott extracted himself from her embrace. He walked over to the handgun and picked it up hesitantly. It felt heavy in his hands. As the pirate picked himself up from the ground, Scott slowly aimed the gun at the man. "St...stay back! Or...I'll shoot!"

Scott cursed himself. Why did his voice betray him right now of all times? Now was the time he had to be strong. He'd wanted to join the fight to protect everyone. Now was his chance to do something other than hide. He knew he was a good shot. He'd always done well on the shooting ranges. So why was his hand suddenly so shaky?

As the pirate got to his feet, he glowered at Scott, evidently not impressed by what he saw. "So you're the reason we're in this whole mess! Listen here, brat, you give me my gun back, and I'll get you out of here alive. You shoot me with that thing, my suit will just shrug it off, I'll kill you, and take my gun back anyway."

Scott steadied his stance like he'd been trained, realizing too late that he probably looked like he was just shifting his feet. Would this guy really kill them? "You...you can't kill us! You need to bring us back alive!"

The large pirate shrugged and took a step forward. "Eh, we're supposed to, but accidents happen. With all the fighting out there, a stray bullet could have ricocheted in here and gutted you easily enough. At least that's what I'll say happened. Now give me that gun!"

Scott took a step back. "You're bluffing. After that fight out there, you're injured, and your suit's compromised. Just turn around and leave."

The pirate shook his head. "And have you shoot me in the back? I don't think so. Besides, you don't have the guts to kill a man. I can see it in your eyes!" He stepped forward again, right where Scott had been leading him.

In an instant, the pirate was slammed on his back and lifted into the air by the snare trap Charlotte had set in the room as a last line of defense. As he hung there, a familiar voice dripping with acid spoke up from behind the pirate, filling Scott with relief. "If you were so worried about not being shot in the back, you shouldn't have gone near my kids!"

A couple of loud shots later, the pirate, now dead, spun around, revealing a large crack in the back of his armor that he'd been shot through.

Unwilling to wait any longer, Alice rushed forward, and Lacy knelt down and hugged her. When she looked up at Scott, their mom had tears in her eyes. "Thank goodness you two are safe! I don't know what I would have done..."

Scott looked down at the gun in his hands. It was less heavy now, but he burned with shame. Why hadn't he been able to fire? A moment later, he felt himself pulled into an embrace as his mom held him tight with one arm, the other still holding Alice to her side. She spoke softly. "You did good, Scott, you did good."

Looking at the pirate hanging in the room, Scott couldn't bring himself to agree, but he nodded anyway. A moment later, their mom released them from their embrace and turned back to the main room. "I have to go back out there right now. There's still one more problem that needs to be dealt with..."

Alice grabbed hold of Lacy's leg. "No! Don't go!"

Lacy knelt down and looked her daughter in the eyes. "I have to. Charlotte is still out there fighting for us. If I don't go help, she could get badly hurt or maybe even die. I can't let that happen. So stay here just a little longer, okay?"

Alice sniffed but nodded and stepped back. Lacy stood and smiled at her two kids one more time. "Your old mom wasn't always the best person, but she's learned a few tricks growing up. It's time I put those to good use!"

With that, she turned and walked back into the large chamber, leaving Scott and Alice alone again.