Page 49 of Gunslinger Girl
The crowd cried out in assent.
“That doesn’t sound very enthusiastic to me…”
Pity winced as the air shook with the applause that followed. That she could garner such a response filled her with disbelief.
“You’ve convinced me! You’ve convinced me!” Halcyon announced. “Our latest performer comes to us from far beyond the borders of our little hamlet, from the humblest of the humble CONA communes. No serpents for her, no! Instead, only cold, deadly steel. If you ever meet her on the plains, in a dark alley, or simply in passing, beware! She is peerless among sharpshooters, blessed with the lightning speed of a jackrabbit and the accuracy of a striking hawk!”
A striking hawk? Pity rolled her eyes.
“Welcome, all of you, Serendipity Jones—deadliest shot in the west!”
Her platform began to rise. A few feet away, another descended. Halcyon stood upon it. He winked at her. Then the tunnel was gone and the arena surrounded her. Pity blinked. The lights were warmer and brighter than she had expected, and the stands were packed to capacity. Her heart thumped against her ribs as she searched for familiar faces, but it was impossible—there were too many people in the shadowed stands.
She took another breath.
Win the crowd, Eva had said. Seduce them, excite them, or shock them, but win them.
She scanned the boxes. The one person it wasn’t hard to find was Selene, in the largest and most luxurious. She was seated between two men Pity didn’t recognize: one with coppery brown hair warmed by the cast of the stage lights, the other older and bald, with a midnight-dark beard and a grim set to his features. Never far, Beau and Adora sat behind them.
The applause slowed to a trickle.
Win the crowd, she thought. Win the crowd.
Pity drew both weapons, pointing the barrels toward her feet, and waited. The audience waited with her, voices hushed, breath held.
A moment later, she felt the low thrum of the barrier.
Win the crowd.
Pity raised one gun, pointed it at Selene, and fired.
With a speed that rivaled the shot, Beau was halfway out of his seat as three bullets exploded into blue sparks. Pity flinched at the look on his face. But in front of him, Selene showed no signs of disturbance, her expression placid.
The stands went dead quiet.
Sweat broke out on Pity’s brow as biting moments passed. No one spoke, no one even moved.
Then Selene raised her hands and clapped.
Applause erupted from the onlookers, but Pity didn’t waste another second to savor her dramatic gambit. Neither did Widmer. The glass globes launched—first to her right, then to her left. Each burst as her shots found them, showering the arena with a rainbow of detonations. The launchers were positioned throughout the stage; one popped up next to her, forcing her to skip backward to find her aim. Widmer was herding her, and she let herself be herded.
One, two, three… She counted her bullets with vigilant precision. When one gun emptied, she’d holster the other and reload, brandishing the weapon to the crowd with a huge smile on her face. They cheered, stamped their feet, and even laughed when Pity decided to play with them, emptying both guns into one section of the stands. I hope you’re keeping count, too, Widmer.
She fell into an energized rhythm.
Inhale, aim. Exhale, shoot.
Dance.
Flourish.
Pose.
Eva’s instruction came to her more easily than expected, bolstered by the cheers every time she hit her target. She only faltered once, her foot catching against the other so that she stumbled. Her shot went wide and a glass globe fell to the ground. Pity just smiled and shrugged dramatically. The audience rewarded her with good-natured laughter.
High above, a cluster of silver, birdlike gliders were released. Pity picked them off as they circled down toward her, reloaded, and then took out the spring-loaded discs that Widmer had rigged to fly up from the floor. Finally, for the apex of her act, nine silver rods descended from the ceiling. At the tip of each was a small golden ball, barely larger than an egg. Pity aimed. As she did, they began to move.
She inhaled sharply. In practice, they had remained stationary.
