Chapter 318: Vanityville Bandits
"Atlas, what do you see out there?" Salem asked as she was led upstairs by Madame Oracle and was being followed by Dag. Who was now resting one of his hands on his gun.
"A trail of smoke coming toward the village. It looks like a bunch of people riding into the village on pack animals." Atlas explained. "Should I move to get a better position to watch the village?"
Salem thought about it for a moment and realized that the older woman was watching Salem through one of her subordinate’s eyes. "No, see if you can figure out where they came from. But stay closer to the ships, just in case." Salem ordered and she could see a smile slightly appear on the older woman’s face.
"Hopefully they are just in town for supplies. If it is about another show of force, another person is going to die." The man that was behind the counter had come up with them. He had bruises that were slowly appearing. Salem actually rubbed her side where the woman hit her. She hit a lot harder than her age would suggest was possible.
"What reason would they have to? Our people are too afraid to go outdoors to even go shopping. Let alone bother her people." Madame Oracle growled out but Salem could see the man flinch and the older woman noticed as well. "What did you do?"
"I... did not do anything." The man seemed ashamed. Salem could not look in his mind but she could tell from the way the older woman was raising and lowering her cane that she was between hitting him and not hitting him. It would seem the man only knew about it and was not directly involved.
"Oh dear..." Madame Oracle leaned on her cane while shaking her head. "Of all the people... I did not expect Jebidiah to go out of his way to go and do something like this."
Salem looked out the window just as the people arrived riding on the back of... horses. But it looked like a variant that adapted to this planet. It would be more accurate to call them bandits. They had improvised armor and gear. While some of them had visible shining cybernetic limbs.
"We used to raise horses and cattle but they stole them all. They were a big part of why we picked this planet to settle." Madame Oracles explained. "But when they arrived one of the things they stole were the horses. While they slaughtered our cattle."
The person at the front was riding a white horse. Salem could tell from her figure that she was a woman. She rode to the center of the interaction of Vanityville. Then she did a spin on her mount before pulling down her sand mask. Revealing her familiar face that had a scar running through one of her eyes.
"Umm... Salem is that...?" Dag stepped forward to get a better look at the woman’s face as she spoke up with a booming voice that no doubt spread through the entire village.
"Listen up! You backwater scum! I told you before to stay clear of my mines!" Her voice was even the same as Salem’s except her Kamot accent was much thicker and more pronounced. "But one of yours was spotted near my mines despite my warning. Now I can not have that." She rode around in a circle and was looking up at all the buildings. But she stopped and stared at the building they were in at the moment. "I thought after what I did to your Chief you would know better. But it seems you need another lesson."
"I can see why you pointed your weapons at me. That is definitely me, except it is not me." Salem clicked her tongue in annoyance. She was hoping it was just a case of mistaken identity. But if it was not for the gnarly scar gracing her doppleganger’s face they could be identical twins.
"Jebidiah Smith! Step out here or I am going to start shooting people!" Salem’s doppelganger ordered as she pulled out a pistol and fired it into the air. It was similar to a Pyre but had clear modifications.
"There is no need for that!" Salem looked over to see a person walking out from between two buildings. He is a young man who had darker shaded skin like Madame Oracle and when Salem glanced over she noticed the worry in the older woman’s face.
"Ohh... Jebbie. You should have left when I told you to." Madame Oracle mumbled.
"Is he your son?" Salem asked, getting a nod in response. "Are you just going to let them gun him down?"
"My son knew the risk. If he does not take the punishment or if interferes it will only just get worse." Madame Oracle explained with a tone of sadness she moved forward and pressed her hand against the window that led to this building’s balcony.
"Jebidiah Smith, you are just as much a problem as your mother. At least she knows how to take her punishment. Tell me do you know how to take your punishment as well?" The Bandit Salem seemed to be getting some type of joy out of this.
Jebidiah bowed his head, "gladly." Bandit Salem rode her horse a bit closer.
"The person I was asking about. Do they have him?" Salem asked as she watched what was happening outside. Resisting the urge to interfere.
"Yes, the first time they came into the village they were dragging him in with chains. Like he was a slave or prisoner. But we have not seen him since that first time." Madame Oracle nodded her head. "But what does it matter? They are too strong. Every time we attack they use something to block the attacks."
Salem smirked, "Ram, get the ship in the air. Atlas and Yuti get near the entrance of the village. Be ready and armed. Dag, get down stairs you will charge out the entrance of the saloon when you see an opportunity to take one of them down. But wait until I expose whatever trick they got up their sleeves."
"We are going to play the hero?" Atlas asked with a grunt.
"Of course we are, don’t you know. The Union is supposed to be the good guys." Salem answered as she pulled her revolver and switched out the bullets for solid ammunition and pushed open the balcony door.