Apart form the fact they dropped nearly 11 feet in the air to the ground, they made it back to Gizzard Gulch in one piece. The gate's invited them in to town, then closed again. The Clakkers watched Stranger run back to the Bounty store again with Umi in his arms. He set Umi down, then walked in the Bounty store. The clerk was leaning over the counter, seeing Stranger and Umi walk in.
"Whoa! That was fast! Yer workin' up a bad-ass reputation 'ere, Stranger! Here, lem'me get that bounty fer you," the clerk brought up it's stamper. Stranger gave it the poster of Duke, and he stamped it. "Well, that squares us up, Stranger! Oh, and Doc called in. He wants you down at his office right now," the clerk said. Stranger grinned in excitement, then left the clerk and the Bounty store. They traveled back to the small shack in the middle of town. The sign that was up was gone, and the doors were unlocked. Stranger didn't shove the doors, just opened them calmly. He walked in casually, Umi striding next to him. She saw behind a counter a big-headed creature with a large top-hat on it's head. It wore a ragged poncho over it's smaller body, and raised up a set of four arms with three large sharp nails on it's hands. It turned to Stranger, but eyed Umi immediately when it saw her with green eyes through it's specticals. She became unnerved, then diverted from it's gaze. The thing also did as well, up to Stranger.
"Welcome back. You'll be happy to see that I've worked up an ingenious approach to your..." it searched around secretly. "...little problem," it then said. Stranger inhaled then growled lowly, giving the Doc a ominous look. "Right, well..." Doc's eyes looked down from Stranger. "Uh, well...due to the "unique nature" of this case, the operation may seem a little..." Doc brought up a stack of papers, searching for his words. "...complicated?" Doc said, hoping Stranger would accept his word. Stranger cocked his head to one side, then pulled a confident smile on his lips. He reached in to his poncho, and slapped down a stack of moolah on the counter, slipping his fingers away and revealing it to Doc. He saw the moolah, then sneered slightly back up to Stranger. "Eh-heh, well..." Doc said suavely, then slapped down a few more papers. He leaned closer to Stranger. "Give or take a few grand," Doc rubbed his fingers together money-like. Stranger's grin turned to a slight frown. The paper on top read of twenty-thousand grand.
"What?" Stranger growled in surprise, searching around the paper. His anger sparked in his brain. "I ain't payin' that," Stranger growled, slamming his hand on the counter. "Ri-i-i-i-i-i-ght. Well, uh, sorry to hear that. But uh, I got a buisness to run," Doc slipped off the operation bill to Stranger, and stacked back up his papers, then stared at Umi again. "...but, I could take that thing over there, for closer examination, if you know what I mean," Doc brought up a rusty lab knife and rubbed it in his fingers. Stranger looked down at Umi, then back up to Doc, putting an arm in front of Umi. "Leave Umi outta this. It only concerns you, an' me," Stranger growled defensively. "Isn't it bothering you? I could take it off yer hands," Doc persuaded more. Stranger couldn't stand it no more, then put his fingers on the counter, and scratched forward, leaving five wood shavings with nail markings in the wood, sneering evilly to Doc. Doc's self was shivering in fear, lowering his specticals to his eye. Doc dropped his papers. "Ok! Fine, then! You can keep it, but yer stilll not getting the operation," Doc said, crossing his arms together over his chest. Stranger's sneer turned down to a frown. "I need this...to survive," Stranger said finally, inching closer to Doc. "Right...well, that could be a problem, couldn't it?" Doc said, pointing in agreement to Stranger. "...for you..." he muttered under his breath. "How the hell am I...payin' fer this?" Stranger shook his head doubtfully. "Yer supposed to be the big bad-ass bounty hunter! Figure it out!" Doc gestured, then walked back in to his office with his papers in his hands. Umi walked to the counter and lifted herself up to the counter.
"Hey! Hey, fat-head! Come and examine my fist in yer face!" Umi shook her fist threatingly. Stranger chuckled at her threat. "Leave 'im be, Umi. Doc's a clown and a rip off," Stranger lifted her off the counter. "You're not going to let that fat-ass talk to you like that, will you?" Umi looked up to him. Stranger shook his head. "Can't do nothin' 'bout it. Just gotta, hope fer the best, an' get more moolah fer the operation," Stranger shrugged, and led her out of the Doc's office.
Behind the counter, and in his office, Doc waited for Stranger and the human to leave. Then, he snatched a phone, and dialed quickly in to the keys. The phone rang in his ear, then a deep voice came in to the earpiece.
"Hello?" a deep voice rang in his ear sounded. "Hey, D. Caste. It's me, Doc," he whispered in the phone. "Oh, hey'a, Doc. What can I do you fer?" D. Caste replied. "Listen. There's a human that's going to Buzzarton, and I need you to get the other outlaws ready for it. I'm going to set a bounty for the human alive, and I mean alive," Doc said seriously to the Outlaw. "What's in it fer us?" D. Caste said gruffly. "Ten-thousand grand," Doc replied. D. Caste grunted graciously. "I'll be sure to get them," D. Caste then said assuringly. "Good. Tell them alive. Not dead, not even a scratch on it's body," Doc reassured. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Alive, got it," D. Caste growled irritatingly. "Good," Doc said, then slammed the phone on it's cradle. He rubbed his chin in a thinking sort of way, then snickered devilishly, and picked up the phone again, and dialed in.
|