Those motherfuckers. Taking another swing at me, will they?

"There may be three or more of them!"

I already saw the one that cut Nellis, so I dive-rolled behind him, and came up with my travel pistol in hand. Yes, we stopped at bailment just for a trip to the hardware shop. And now I'm going to give the tankhumpers hot loud payback. If only this squirrely bastard would hold still long enough.

Nellis wiped the blood off her throat. It was already glued closed with that sticky protein that trolls have, but I don't think she'd be able to talk for a bit. Her attacker was wildly swinging a dark green knife. Orc steel, most likely, and it looked like military issue. It was probably the most common model of blade in the country right now.

In the midst of one of his swings, Nellis stepped into it, taking the blade between the bones of her left forearm. Then with a twist and a pivot, he was stuck grappling for his stuck weapon, as purple blood gouted over his face.  That was my opportunity. I got off three shots, one of them hitting him in the shoulder. He let go the knife, and staggered back. Something shoved me over, hard, and I slid and rolled over the tunnel floor.

Ow. Fuck. So that's the second guy. Keep moving, Ravy. I scrambled back to my feet and ran in the direction I was already going. Up the wall. Jump off.  Blind shot at the place I was just in. That's lucky. Second guy was right there with a wrecking bar, trying to smash my skull in. Can't tell where I got him, but he hit the ground as I leaped over his head.

Nell had grabbed first guy by the head, and shoved his noggin hard into the stone wall. It made a "pok" sound, and the man crumpled to the floor like a rag doll. I whirled around to put another shot into second guy if I had to, and he hadn't moved from where I last saw him.

Nellis then made a sound in her throat that chilled me to my core. Her sliced vocal cords, only partially healed, flapped in pain and fury. She bent down, grabbed the fallen man by the cranium again, drew her arm back, and punched the wall with it. This time, instead of a "pok", there was a horrific "crunch". Bright red blood splattered across the stone. She pulled back again. Punched again. Instead of "crunch", a "splap".

I didn't have the luxury of watching that. I sidestepped around the second guy, my pistol ready to put more holes in him. I finally made eye contact.  He was still alive, his eyes tracking me. I must have tagged him in the spine with my lucky shot. Blood trickled out of his mouth. His breath bubbled through it. He'd drown in a minute. Did I really want that?

No. I gave him a shot through his temple, and his light went out. Keep moving, Ravy. I stopped and reversed direction, then juked again. No third guy? No third guy. Time started moving at the normal speed again.

Nellis had removed the green knife from her arm, and the bleeding had already stopped. Not so, the tears. Instead of howling in rage, she was now sobbing in shock and fear. I looked on the bodies, and felt nothing. I couldn't tell if they were the same ones that had beaten me before. It didn't matter.  They came for violence, and got what they came for.

"Nellis. We got them. It's over."

I moved in and encircled her in a comforting hug. As she bawled in my arms, I shot etherflares down the tunnel in both directions. Deserted, each way.  Hopefully the cops would see one, or someone who saw would sound an alarm.

"Shhhh. It's okay."

Nellis's voice was still ragged and altered from the surprise attack, but she croaked out a few words. "I got a level in Berserker, Rav. I can't be a doctor like that."

"Yes, you can. You get to choose what you are, remember? The system doesn't control you. Not any more."

A tortured wail came out of her mouth. She was larger than I was, by far, but I felt like I was cradling a small child in my arms.

At last, someone non-threatening arrived on the scene, gawping at all the blood in horror.

"You! Run and fetch the police! Do it now!"

My tone allowed for nothing but immediate obedience. The dwarf man ran off in the direction of the college-adjacent police station. Minutes later, the first uniformed constables arrived on the scene, their nonlethal weapons in hand.  Cops being cops, they aimed at us.

"Show us your hands! Show hands!"

I pulled Nellis's hands away from her body. She wasn't quite in a fit state for following barked orders at the moment. I let go of Nell's hands, and they sank a bit, but stayed visible. I pointed at my pistol, the knife, and the wrecking bar, all lying on the ground well away from us.

"You'll want to recover those weapons for the detectives. I think these men were targeting me, specifically."

Like most goblins, I got the education about cops and goblins early. Always remember you're a goblin, and therefore a suspect in every crime in the world.  Remind cops how they're supposed to do their jobs before they get it wrong.  And if you're nicked, you're nicked; don't fight it.

"I am constable Ujot of the Cairns municipal police. You, the troll and the hobgoblin, are under arrest, pursuant to an investigation of public violence.  You have the right to be presumed innocent. You have the right to refuse search or questioning. You have the right to competent legal counsel. Do you understand your rights in this situation?"

"I understand." As I spoke, Nellis nodded.

"For your safety, and the safety of our constables, we require that you be physically restrained while in custody. Are you in a fit condition to have your wrists kept behind your back, possibly for an extended period of time?"

"I am." Again, Nellis just nodded numbly.

"Be brave for me, Nell. The hard part where we survive is over, but it looks like we have a stupid shitty part coming up. Don't be afraid to tell the truth, but don't answer any questions that they haven't asked, either."

The constables peeled me off, slapped on the manacles, and led me in to the back of the crookscarriage, locking the manacles to one of the slots built in for that purpose. Regular manacles. Not etherist restraints. Idiots.

Nellis got the same treatment. Locked in next to me on the bench, she slumped over with her head on my shoulder. One can't give much of a hug with just a chin and a shoulder, but I gave it my best shot.

The carriage doors closed, and rolled away from the scene. Those fucking bootpolishers might not have rolled me up again, but police custody was only marginally better as a way to while away a sunwane. Fuck!