TO THE SHORES OF TRIPLE, LEE! - Ray Gun Revival

Jasper Squad by Paul Christian Glenn
Rey wrinkled her nose, leaned forward
and took a whiff. It was odorless. She looked
at Stamp and shook her head.
“Then it’s not fresh,” he said, relaxing.
“Don’t worry about it.”
With her head in pain and her back covered
with unidentifiable goo, Rey felt her temper
rising. “I’ve had enough of this,” she said. “I’m
going to find the rest of my squad so I can get
off this rock. Do whatever you like, but let me
go.” Stamp stood up slowly. “You’re beat half
to death,” he said, “and you don’t know how
to get inside. You’re not going to make it.”
Rey said nothing.
Stamp stepped forward, his massive frame
dwarfing her. “We go in together, and you do
exactly as I say. No questions, no arguments.”
Rey cocked her head back and glared at
him.
He pushed himself up against her body and
lowered his face to hers. “I don’t like people
taking chances with my life,” he breathed. “If
I find out that you’ve lied to me about that
ship, I will shoot you dead in the center of
your pretty little face.”
Rey’s stomach trembled, but she stood
firm, her chin jutted, and stared him down
through sheer force of will.
Stamp squinted at her, then stepped back.
“Follow me,” he grunted. “And don’t fall down,
‘cause I’ll leave you.”
He struck off in a direction opposite the
clearing, and Rey fell in step behind him,
tramping deeper into the stone forest. Her
head throbbed, her body ached, and her
nerves were shot. Although terrified of Stamp,
Rey was lucid enough to know that he was
right. She couldn’t pull this off alone, without
his savvy, his strength, and, perhaps, his brutality.
She desperately hoped that Stamp would
be incarcerated before he discovered that she
had indeed lied.
They walked in silence for hours, roughly
cutting a wide circle around the clearing, then
moving back toward the far end. Rey’s head
still throbbed, but she felt her strength returning.
She was beginning to wonder if they
would make Cuttery’s hold by nightfall when
Stamp finally stopped.
“You’re wheezing hard enough,” he said.
“Take a break and get your wind.” He spoke
evenly, but she noticed that he favored his
Ray Gun Revival – August 1, 2006 Issue 03
Pg.
wounded leg as he leaned against a scabrous
pillar.
Suddenly, a hideous, inhuman moan
echoed through the forest, followed by a
weird, wet sloshing like the entrails of a thousand
men being dragged along the stony
ground. Shivers shot up Rey’s spine, and her
hair stood on end.
Stamp stopped short and spun around,
scanning the surrounding jagged maze.
“What is that?” whispered Rey, shuddering.
“Run!” hissed Stamp.
Next Episode: Into the Labyrinth!
Want to catch up? Visit www.cirhsein.com/
jaspersquad.html for past episodes, character
biographies, canonical history of the Jasper
Squad universe, and more!
Paul Christian Glenn
Paul Christian Glenn is a feature film author and
director, lyricist, and all-around fiction writer, and
is able to do far more than he’s been given credit
for here.
His bio reads like this: “Paul Christian Glenn has
been writing for as long as he can remember. It
should be noted, however, that he has a notoriously
short memory.”