Sleight Of Mind: a Psi-Kicks story by GF Willmetts.

‘Now, fine people, we have here the latest state of the art weapon. A prototype gun, capable of acting as a sniper as well as close-up. Automatic and semi-automatic. It is adaptable to take any calibre of ammunition. The material is composite. Put in a suitable case, it can pass through any security x-ray machine and not detect metal. Great for those who want to take it home with you. All carbide. This piece, with all of its accessories, will make you as an assassin perfect for any upcoming hits.

Nine more are being made and we are in the process of acquiring them, too. Not legally.’

Smith paused but none of the stone-faced killers in front of him were not going to smile unless pushed. This gun was strictly under the table. ‘But owning the prototype will put one of you ahead of the game and, for us, to gauge the price of the others.’

On the screen behind him, the footage of the gun in use with various info for sniper and close-up use.

‘Any questions?’

‘Normal ammunition can’t be used as a distance of two miles.’

‘A good point. However, I never said that it would. Your choice of ammunition is up to you and what is available for the distance you’re firing. Choosing the right one for distance is up to you when you are in situ but you can use your ammunition of choice. The manufacturers are including a selection of ammo which will be included in the price.’

‘I thought you said it could fire any ammunition?’

‘It can but it is also from the factory for when they were test firing. Once you run out of it or even before you, use your bullets of choice. If you win the auction, you don’t have to take their ammo. The rich amongst you can use your own.’

There was a few chuckles this time from the people on the floor. Mostly assassins attracted by getting the perfect weapon. The profession was odd. At this grade, there was a lot of professional respect not to get in each other’s way even when a second was paid as a back-up. Then again, how many victims had an open hit on them these days. Assassins preferred to have half the money in advance as part of the negotiation.

Drawing them out had been simple enough. A top flight military gun stolen and available at a price. An assassination was coming up. That was all they had to go on. That and in the London area. The word had quickly spread world-wide that it was up for auction with a million put up front, returnable to losers minus ten per cent, for attendance. There were a couple Columbians there. Quite why some mafia hoods were there when they preferred close-up, who knew? Having a one-of-a-kind gun for now when it was needed had to be useful and, by attending, nine of the others would have the other guns. Fifteen bidders. Any heavies had to stay on the other side of the door. Only a couple had done that.

‘Clips are all well and good but I want to try it before I bid for it,’ one voice spoke out.

There was a murmur of agreement.

Across the room, a target range lit up. Standing by a table were three heavily armed men.

‘I take it all of you want to test the gun. A clip each. Not full, of course. Anyone not firing at the targets will be shot. The perfect gun doesn’t mean it can be faster than a keen shot. That shouldn’t need to be said. I’m sure you’re all on honourable and the door is on a timelock with poisonous gas if I’m not alive to sign us out. This is supposed to be an honourable profession.’

A few more chuckles but a few stonefaces told their own story.

The man at the table facing the target area was big. He handed the new weapon to the first assassin, who examined the gun, put his clip in before aiming at the target and letting loose. The target was obliterated. The second assassin was more selective and shot the bullets one at a time, leaving a single hole in the target. The third just fired one bullet, took the clip out and handed it back but still examined the gun. The fourth was a woman who examined the gun and then threw it into the air and it vanished. Then so did the woman and big man who had handed her the gun with her.

The locked door sprung open.

‘Shit! They disengaged the lethal gas.’

The various assassins looked around bewildered for a couple seconds before assessing the situation.

‘Stealth technology I was auctioning tomorrow. It’ll short out in a few minutes. I’ll give a discount to whoever returns the gun. Looks like an assassin couldn’t wait to win the auction.’

That got them. The thirteen remaining assassins he had pin-pointed quickly ran out the door.

‘How could they not see us, Polly?’ a deep voice asked.

‘Magician’s trick, Kick, sleight of mind.’ She made sure there was no ammunition left in the chamber of the gun before removing the clip.

‘Get the car. We need to give them something to chase but give them a chance to get going first.’

Once out of the room, Polly Kettle turned to a brightly dyed redhead in a leather Ramones labelled jacket that no one had spotted as John Smith posing as the auctioneer came down to join them.

‘Nice trick, Sheena, but I thought I was being left out in the cold?’ Polly looked at both of them.

‘Short notice, Pollyput, don’tcha know? No time to brief. Farsighters predicted an assassination hit and where. In early, figured we gave the gun. ‘Cept we didn’t. Whoever thinks you’re back-up and will go to best spot.’

‘Except I don’t know where that is’, Polly said. ‘Wouldn’t they have a weapon already?’

‘Miss out on this beauty?’ Sheena shook her head. Trackers in ours. These are stubborn people, don’tcha know? Had to promise this gun back. Given them an opportunity to nick it.’

‘But they didn’t nick it. I’ve got it here.’

John Smith joined in. ‘We saw how dangerous this gun is and we couldn’t let them have it. Hence your late arrival. You take the hit. We know where from. One of the stubborn bastards couldn’t hide that thought as they raced off. Not as stubborn as he thought. You act as the back-up to take the hit but really…’

‘Stop the assassination, Pollyput’, Shenna continued. ‘Get the person who ordered it.’

‘Even if it’s a worthy hit?’

‘We’ll worry about that later. We still need the paymaster.’

‘He’ll take the gun when we get there. Tall order handing over the gun without getting killed.’

‘Unless you have the same target.’

‘And I’m a known criminal element.’

‘The perfect candidate, Pollyput, don’tcha know? A spare in case the first fails who now wants to go first. Some of them knew your face.’

‘And figure out which of them is on or all of them for that matter if its such a big hit.’

Polly closed her eyes briefly. ‘Kick is back. I’ll keep his involvement to the minimum.’

‘I can sort out his memory, Pollyput. Back of the car, don’cha know.’

‘Let’s hope whoever it is gets rid of the opposition.’

Polly took a deep breath and was gone. She preferred not to be this involved in Stable work. Behind her, Sheena slipped into the backseat and ducked down. Kick gave a slight shudder but no other indication there were two women.

In the car, she gave her own explanation to her loyal lieutenant, showing a map before they drove off. ‘There’s a public hit on and one or most of them want the best gun in the business. We know where the assassin will fire but not who.’

‘Your friends in intelligence, Pol?’

‘It pays to keep a connection. They’ll owe a favour.’

Kick smiled. ‘Favours are always useful. Do we know who from that group?’

Polly shook her head. ‘They will have noted all the assassins for other uses.’

‘Nothing difficult then.’

‘Only if they had a cut-out which is likely.’

‘One problem at a time.’

‘It has to be a tricky hit for them to want this gun on the day of the hit.’

‘Or they have problems getting a gun past customs.’

Polly shrugged. ‘Let’s hope he’s not planning a shot from over two miles away. Too many candidates.’

‘We have where but there are plenty of targets within the area.’

‘Can I see the map again, Pol?’

She put the map over the steering wheel and he looked down and still drove at speed but kept looking.

‘There’s a guildhall event going on. Lots of internationals.’

Polly nodded. ‘I’ll bear it in mind.’

‘Getting someone in the window long enough for a single shot at a distance is a lot harder than an outdoor shot even with the best gun in the world.’

‘Meaning?’

‘They won’t be firing at a distance. Too much glass distortion for the weather.’

‘That can be compensated for. This gun is that good. There’s some automatic targeting against bad weather.’

‘A slight movement by the target and it would still miss.’

‘No wonder whoever what’s to improve their chances.’

  <<Did you get that?>>

  <<You people are the experts.>>

  <<We steal not assassinate.>>

  <<But you have the experience.>>

  <<We’ll check who’s in the guildhall.>>

  <<Why shoot from outside when it would be quicker inside.>>

  <<An assassin who gets away shoots another day.>>

‘You look distracted, Pol.’

‘Where’s the best place for a getaway, Kick?’

‘I’ll park nearby but not close to the other car. Its only a quick hop to Heathrow.’

  <<You’re putting a lot of confidence in Kick’s ability, Pollyput.>>

  <<Loyal and expert. Best in the team.>>

‘There’s four possible places for a hit around here but the guildhall seems to a good bet.’

‘Why?’ Polly paused, looking in the mirror at Sheena. ‘Just in case we have an audience.’

‘A local hit would use local people. They’d know the place better. The people at the auction were mostly foreign. Stands to reason they’d be after someone they couldn’t get in their own country. Blame it on foreigners.’

‘But will they worry who takes the shot?’

‘They won’t but they might want to make the claim for the money.’

  <<You get that?>>

  <<It would be the easiest way to find the paymaster.>>

Polly inspected the gun and changed clips.

‘Let’s make it look good. I’ve bugged the gun. I doubt whoever won’t want to part with such a rarity.’

‘Make it look real otherwise, Pol?’

She nodded. ‘My friends will keep everything safe.’

‘Even if the target deserves it.’

‘We can worry about that later.’

They got out and walked up the slope.

A minute later, Shenna followed but at a discrete distance. Things still felt erratic since they got Earth back to normal. The passage of time was disturbing. The others felt so as well. They expected a version of what they went through to correspond but it wasn’t so easy. They thought it a parallel time with events corresponding to the present. A nuisance finding that wasn’t entirely true. Polly seemed to take it a lot more in her stride considering how they dropped her in the deep end. It wasn’t the farsighters fault. Soon as they knew, the events had changed and Psionic involvement clouded this future. No assassinations on British soil. It was getting back in the swing. We couldn’t have gotten in later. She shrugged. Too much thinking.

The snub of a gun pressed into her cheek. She hadn’t been paying enough attention around her.

‘Keep quiet and keep walking, birdie.’

The two of them continued up the small hill. At the top, Polly was crouched aiming the rifle at the guildhall. Behind her, the third man from the auction who only fired one bullet, had his gun at the back of Kick’s neck. Polly glanced backwards briefly. She had missed this as well.

‘I’m the back-up markswoman. I won’t shoot if my driver is harmed.’

The man with Shenna stared a moment. ‘I didn’t hire you.’

‘I don’t know you. I was hired indirectly. Local talent. One of your associates maybe?’

‘I did not hire a back-up, especially one his took the gun from the auction.’

‘So why are you here? Can’t you trust your assassins to do the job or do you want to watch?’

‘Neither. If we had the right gun, I could take the shot. Personal satisfaction. Your gun prototype was too good an opportunity.’ The man pushed a little harder on Sheena’s cheek, addressing her. ‘So what are you doing here?’

‘We want our gun back…unless you’re paying for rental right now.’

‘We didn’t steal it. She did.’

‘But you want to use it.’

‘If you don’t interfere, I’ll pay this rental and you’ll have proof of how effective it is.’

‘And these two?’ Sheena paused. ‘It isn’t as though they don’t want to work for you.’

‘Kem. The gun. Then keep back. I’ll give them a cut.’

The assassin grabbed the gun from Polly and directed her and Kick a few feet away with his pistol while handing it to the paymaster. Polly put her finger to her lips and Kick kept quiet.

The paymaster looked at the gun and down its sights. ‘Magnificent.’

He pulled out the clip and put in one from his pocket. ‘I like the development that it can fire any bullets.’

‘Long distance still needs the right cartridge, don’tcha know?’

‘These are explosive bullets. They’re hard enough.’

He aimed and fired on automatic at the guildhall. The gun was silent, compensating for much of the noise.

There was a silence.

The paymaster looked happy down the sights.

‘Kill them!’

Kem the assassin in quick succession shot Polly, Kick and Sheena, watching the bodies fall to the ground. They then left. As quick as that.

‘Why am I still alive, Pol?’ Kick asked slowly, sitting up.

‘Some of Sheena’s magic. Sleight of the mind. They only thought they shot us and took the gun.’ She picked the gun up from the ground and pulled out the clip, finding it empty. Then sighted the gun at the guildhall. There was a crater in the grounds. The wall and windows untouched. There was panic inside but nothing directed at them. Despite her talk, Sheena had been really busy.

‘Looks like they’ll have a new pond. Kick, follow them at a distance and find out what happens next. Take the car. I’ll contact you later.’

‘Er…yes, ma’am.’

Polly packed the gun back into its case, putting the original clip into a slot.

‘Do we need to get out of here, Sheena?’

The flame-haired Psionic stood staring into the distance. ‘No.’

She slipped down onto the ground.

‘I thought you couldn’t control Blanks or stubborn people?’

‘Only while they stayed stubborn. Giving them the gun got them excited enough to spike them. After that, everything was my control. Sorry about controlling Kick but it needed to look good, don’tcha know? If he stayed upright, looked a little odd.’

‘I thought they shot us.’

Sheena opened her hand and dropped three bullets onto the ground. ‘At least he didn’t try shooting those explosive bullets at us. It wasn’t total control. His firing at the guild place so soon surprised me a bit. Tightened the control. Couldn’t control too many so misdirected. Sharing off Smitty gave me his Woody ghost to grab the bullets.’

‘What happens next?’

Sheena closed her eyes and opened them smiling. ‘They’re heading to their embassy where he’s going to declare himself leader after the assassination. They say no assassination or how did he know there was one taking place? Traitorous actions.’

‘And a short trip back home for their own firing squad. Tidy, Sheena. Hands clean.’

Sheena stood up. ‘Tidy sweep. No soot lasts, don’tcha know?’

‘But you still have thirteen assassins knowing there’s a hot gun out there.’

‘The media will report it missed and we return the money, don’tcha know. Security tightens at the gun factory.’

‘Still tidy.’

‘An’ back in the swings and roundabouts.’

end

 

© Psi-Kicks, Polly Kettle, Kick McKinley, Sheena Ramone and John ‘Smitty’ Smith © GF Willmetts 2023-24

No assassins were killed in the making of this story.