Rock World

Rock World
By Scott Wilson
Word Count: 588

A hover cycle sped across the secluded, desert plain, leaving a trail of red dust in its wake. The rider looked over his shoulder occasionally, speeding up when seeing a small black dot on the horizon. Ahead of the speeding vehicle, a large rocky outcrop jutted up from the barren desert like a child’s first tooth.

Upon reaching the perimeter of the outcrop, the rider slowed down, swung around and stopped. With the cycle safely hidden in a small crevasse, the rider began scaling the steep rock face like a spider. He stopped when reaching a small ledge that he could lay on out of sight. A soft beep emitted from a communication device on his wrist, letting him know the pursuer was within one kilometer now. Time to a showdown.
The rider flicked the safety off his Colt rifle, flicked the cap off the scope and waited. In the distance, the small black dot grew larger until the rider could hear the hum of the All Terrain Vehicle. It became a roar as it thundered closer, until within the range of the rider’s rifle. A carefully aimed, single shot took out the front driver’s side wheel. It weaved and slide out of control on the sandy surface, flipping and rolling when the driver finally lost control and swerved to get away from the rocky outcrop.

The rider took aim again, this time, waiting for the pursuer to scramble out of the wreckage. He did not expect the laser bolt from the shattered window at the rear of the vehicle. Rock and debris tumbled down on the rider from the large hole blasted in the outcrop a few feet above where he lay.

“Give it up, Braeden,” yelled a female voice from the wreckage. “We’ve got you outgunned.”

Braeden knew they did not know exactly where he was, they may have seen a flash from the muzzle of the barrel before their vehicle overturned, but if they could pinpoint where he lay, their laser sights would make him an easy target. He slide like a wounded snake backwards, lowering himself over the edge and out of their sight. He didn’t know how these bounty hunters tracked him down to this planet, but he did know he needed to relieve them of their advanced weapons. The technology of the planet he crashed on appeared to be that of early nineteenth century Earth. The only weapons he managed to acquire to date were a pair of six shooters and a rifle.

“Time to leave this party,” Braeden said softly as he slide down the steep incline until he gained a secure foothold. He felt a sharp pain in his right ankle from the heavy impact and gritted his teeth. Braeden turned around, saw he was still too far up to jump down with a twisted ankle. Time was running out, Braeden knew the bounty hunters would be making their way towards the outcrop now there had been no return fire. He leapt.

“Uh,” he groaned, landing on his both feet, rolling to lessen the impact.

He quickly clambered to his feet and ran to the hover cycle.

Another blast high above sent more rocks and debris came tumbling down, narrowly missing the hover cycle. Braeden kicked the cycle into gear and sped away from the three bounty hunters. They would not capture him today. Perhaps, being stranded in the middle of this hostile desert might even may be enough to stop them ever capturing him.