and I spun around to leave his company and was confronted by an onslaught of approaching bandits .
" What spoils !" the bandits cried . " A teepee creeper and his squaw !"
" That ain ' t no squaw ! That one ' s quite a looker ! The boss ' ll be pleased !"
I have the distinct feeling " squaw " is not so much a noun as a racial slur around these parts . Well , I was in no mood to be accosted on all sides by men , and so I grabbed Thunderboy ' s hatchet . " I am a respectable English lady !" I roared . " Ha ! Ha !" A bandit cried . " We ' ll get a nice ransom for that one !"
We fought back , wildly . I ' m certain that Thunderboy alone could have handled the men , if they had not been so well armed , but their steam powered devices made them too powerful . He fought most majestically and though we failed , each one of those bandits suffered from deep bruising , I expect .
However , they gathered us up in a little cage and rode off into the grasslands . I ' m not so sure they got as far as they wanted , though . After some miles we came to a set of two bridges , side by side , and hesitated . One was an old , decrepit bridge -- surely made by amateurs , and falling apart . The other was made of ironwork , but unfinished . It only stretched halfway across the expanse .
" There have to be other ways around ," said one bandit .
" There ' s nothing there ," said another . " It ' s gone now . It ' s day time ."
But the men shrank back when a booming voice called from beneath the bridge , " Who ' s that tapping over my bridge ?"
" We are Wesley Kyle ' s men ," one bandit called out , with fear in his voice . " We ' re taking this woman back for ransom . The injun don ' t matter as much ," he hastily added .
" Mmm ," sighed the booming voice . " If you wish to cross the bridge , you must pay the toll ."
At that , a monstrous mechanical beast heaved himself up the side of the embankment . It was so much like an automaton , but so much bigger ! The head was iron wrought , and had features like a medieval executioner ' s hood . A large railing ran around it ' s neck and shoulders , and masses of ironwork armor wrapped it ' s gigantic limbs . Chimneys of smoke rose from its back and it held a massive staff which spat steam and sparks . The bandits drew closer together . " We have money ," said the boldest , holding out a bundle which he seemed to think would do the trick .
The giant took it between his massive fingers and looked at it . Then with a dainty pinch he tossed it into the flames of his staff .
" I care not for money ," the beast replied . " But I am in need of labor ." The beast took a sweeping glance over the men . " We can sell you the redskin ," a bandit said , pulling Thunderboy from the cage and pushing him in front of the monster . " Mmm ," sighed the creature . " Sell ?" " No ," replied the bandit quickly . " I mean pay ... for the toll ." " Ah !" exclaimed the beast . " Yes . Very well ." The bandits heaved a sigh of relief . " But that doesn ' t quite cover the toll ." " Now , see here !" cried the bandit who had given the money . " That ' s a large enough cost ."
The giant made a sweeping movement towards the bandit , pulled him ingloriously from his mechanical augmentation and cast the man aside . The monster then tore the mechanical pieces apart and threw the broken equipment in front of the other bandits .
" You can have the woman , too !" a bandit called out .
They began to argue over me like a piece of property . One claimed , " The money we ' ll get for the ransom ..." and another , " He ' ll take us instead if we don ' t give him what he wants !"
And so they pulled me from the cage and