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Images by Adventure Books of Seattle.
Author Note:
(This story appeared a few years back in the book 'Dimensions', written by yours truly and British writer Geoff Nelder. It's a bit over-the-top, I'll admit. If you haven't yet seen the article that goes with this story, you should.)
The two officers from Compliance huddled under the thin cover of a sagging evergreen, shivering hard. Heavy snowfall made it difficult to see across the clearing. They had been forced to walk the last six miles after their hovercraft had balked at the extreme altitude.
The officers stared across the clearing at an old log cabin. White smoke drifted from the chimney. There was no wind, although it was still bitterly cold.
"Think he's inside the cabin?"
"Who the hell would be out in this weather?" Wilson snapped back. "Oh, he's in there all right."
Markham rubbed his hands together and breathed into them to generate some warmth. "He's the last holdout. You almost have to give him a medal for persistence."
"I don't care who he is. He's a lawbreaker, that's all I know. Let's finish this up and go home. I'm freezing."
Wilson crawled out from under the tree and shouted up to the cabin. "Gregory Anderson! This is Officer David Wilson of the Central World Government! Come out with your hands up!"
There was no response. A bit of white smoke curled up from the stone chimney.
"Anderson! Come on out!"
Soft snow drifted heavily to the ground. Wilson brushed some of it from his parka. "Anderson! You must have the tracking chip inserted under your skin! It's the law! Now show yourself!"
A soft 'click' sounded behind the two men. "Not today, boys." The voice was dark and quiet, without a trace of pity.
Birds in the surrounding trees exploded into the sky, startled by the blast of the shotgun.
