A Saga of Revenge

Part Five: Bixby through the Canyon



Bixby wiped the sweat from his face with his hand as he continued to move through the canyon. The sun shined harshly in the clear sky. Bixby could feel the heat emanating off of every rock. As tired as he was physically, he remained mentally sharp. He examined every crevice and every boulder as he passed, paranoid of being attacked. He had learned in this long pursuit that his enemy always attacked at the worst times. After three straight days of trudging nonstop through this hot wasteland, Bixby was exhausted. Movement in the sky caught his eye and he stopped, his hand instinctively going to his gun. It was a bird, but Bixby watched it closely, examining its behavior. He almost felt silly for being so paranoid, but every time he had let his guard down on this journey he had been attacked. The bird circled above, then glided away on the hot wind. Bixby relaxed and continued moving. He looked up, checking the position of the sun. He expected to reach the train station by nightfall.

Hours passed as he continued his slow shuffle through the canyon. He still examined every inch of land he passed, but he was no longer on edge like he had been before. His clothes were soaked through with sweat. Each step burned the muscles in his legs. His breathing was ragged and he wanted so badly to stop and sleep. Perhaps he had been wrong about the enemy attacking. Perhaps this was the one leg of the journey he would go on unmolested. He tried to concentrate on the train station, viewing it in his mind as a finish line. Once there he would be able to relax and probably even catch some sleep on the train ride. Bixby smiled his slight, crooked smile as he thought of sleep. It had been almost four days ago the last time he had slept. As he came up another hill, he saw the train station in the distance. There was a large mobile assault vehicle between him and it, however. Once again his enemy had known the perfect time to attack him. Bixby was a product of many wars yet he had never faced an enemy such as this. An enemy who knew his every step before he took it. An enemy Bixby hated with all of his being. An enemy that Bixby saw no true way of defeating.
 

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