Tana screamed so loudly she scared the man with the gun as she leapt forward. She couldn't reach that weapon, so she threw herself over Krisin.
Krisin grunted. "Honest to God, Tana -- I was doing fine until you sucker punched me in the kidney."
"Quiet. I'm saving your life."
It was Lisel, in fact, who was doing something worthwhile. He had jogged up around the trees and come up behind the man, who started to turn but got distracted by the snowballs Tom lobbed at him.
Lisel tackled the man and put him down.
The gun went off, and Tana felt a brush of fire along her left leg, but they had the fool and his weapon in hand.
"Will you get off me now, so I don't look like a discarded rug thrown out in the snow?"
Tana scrambled off as Krisin started to sit up. She could see more blood in the snow, and an ugly wound on his lower right side, and her leg bled a bit as well. Neither of them was happy.
A short, round man with a shock of white hair, no coat, slippers, and a backpack in hand, raced out of the veil of snow. Tana rushed to her feet and would have leapt and attacked, but the poor man yelped and fell backward into the snow.
"Medtech!" he gasped and held up his pack with the requisite bright red cross in place. "Told me someone was shot."
"That would be me," Krisin said with a slight gasp as he moved. "Is that a problem?"
"Only if your friend here doesn't get out of the way."
Tana backed off and moved over with Lisel, though she still didn't trust the man. However, he did seem competent and kind.
"Damn stupid people with their historical weapons," the medtech grumbled. "We need to get you to the hotel and my unit there so I can dig it out."
"Dig what out?" Krisin asked and sounded worried for the first time.
"Bullet. Small caliber, so it shouldn't be too difficult, but you don't want it moving around in there. Besides, they don't worry about spreading infection --"
"Oh." Krisin started to get to his feet. Tana and Lisel both rushed to help him. He swayed. "Damn."
"Careful. I've got a patch to stop the bleeding, but it won't hold for long."
"I'll keep watch for more trouble," Tom promised and sounded apologetic. "I have people checking the woods around us. Let's just get inside as soon as we can."
Tana had the feeling that he didn't trust all of his own people. Tana wasn't sure if she trusted him. After all, he'd not kept an eye on Sally, even though he must have known about her attitude.
And what about the medtech? She wanted someone from the ship to take care of Krisin -- not that she trusted them all that well, but because they took her seriously if she threatened them.
"Stop growling, Tana," Krisin said and put a hand to his side. "You'll scare them off faster than I will."
Krisin did not sound steady. Tana looked up to see his eyes fluttering --
"Lisel!" she warned.
Somehow they kept him from falling. The medtech called for a stretcher, and Tom called in a few people to carry and others to protect them.
Tana almost complained that he should have done this from the start, but she soon realized how difficult it was to carry someone -- let alone a rather large Catchin -- in this icy terrain. They somehow kept from dropping him in the snow, though a couple of the men did fall.
There were shots and shouts behind them as they reached the impressive front door to the building. Tana would have stopped to study the intricately carved surface and colored glass, but a window to the right exploded from a gunshot. They all rushed inside and away from the openings. People inside ran in all directions, shouting and wailing. Tana wondered how they ever survived.
The medtech ignored the others, though a few noted the Catchin on the stretcher, and some even made sounds of dislike and distrust.
They didn't know how lucky they were that she didn't have a weapon. Or even a big stick.
The medtech pushed a palm lock on the wall, and a door opened to a short hall. They were quickly inside, and the door closed, with no one else getting in with them. The sudden silence startled her.
"Idiots. They're all idiots," the medtech grumbled. "Why am I still here? I hate snow!"
They turned a corner and stepped into a large, very modern medunit. Tana was surprised to see two assistants ready to help out. In a moment, they had Krisin off into a side room, and the door closed.
"Let me look at your leg," a woman said and waved Tana toward a bed. "Don't argue. It will help you pass some of the time."
She still would have argued, but Lisel picked her up and put her on the bed before she could protest.
"Don't do that!"
Lisel pushed her back when she started to stand. The medtech went straight to work, mumbling apologies whenever Tana winced. She wanted to curse, but it wasn't about her leg. What was taking so long with Krisin? She wanted to get up and pace or go to that closed door and pound on it.
"That should do," the woman said. She patted Tana on the shoulder. "And don't worry. Medtech Ret does excellent work. You would be surprised at the kinds of problems that show up. He's not even the first shooting victim. Idiots with toys who don't even consider the damage they could do."
"Krisin is a Catchin."
"We did notice," she said. Then she patted Tana's arm again. "Relax."
That wasn't going to happen, and not just because of Krisin. Her pocketcomp beeped, and she pulled it out with a grimace. "Captain Dundas. This won't be good."
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