Lindy's Lodge: Gizmo My Way

The moment the buzzing stopped, Sue rapped on the door four times in quick succession. "Oh, Lindy?" she called out. "It's Sue, dear. May I come in?"

Sue opened the door and stepped right in. Her eyes switched back and forth between Lindy and the board she was repairing. "Mmmm. Looks good as new, eh?" she said with a slight grin. Her eyesight was no great shakes, but she was close enough to even see the small soldering iron Lindy had set aside.

She sat down on a nearby chair and felt the urge to scratch her itchy left leg. She lifted her pants leg and scratched away, growling softly. "This leg's been irritatin' me all day," she said. "Anyway, Lindy, I came to ask a favor. Are you gonna be busy with some other project, or...?"

"If it isn't asking too much—"

She pulled her pants leg back down, then stood up again, slowly pacing around the room.

"—my Ecco could use a little firepower. How much d'you know about weaponry?"

Sue referred to her 3195 Ecco, the hovercar parked all the way at the ground level. Before Robotnik entered and the adult Dantas soon, well, exited, it was the family car, used mainly by her mother, a construction worker, either to lug huge quantities of wood, or to carry some heavy piece of machinery to a certain location. Weapons were never a concern at all to them: her father, the architect, put his ideas on paper, while her mother turned those paper ideas into the real thing.

Sue thought for a minute, rubbing her chin. "Hmh. I wouldn't mind havin' two cannons. I s'pose I could put 'em...hmm." She cycled through several possibilities: both cannons in the front, one in the front, one in the back... "One on either end just in case," she decided. "Can't leave either end vulnerable to attack, y'know?"

Sue immediately followed Lindy, her hands rested behind her back. "Thanks...I'll help you out with them, if that's what you want," she said, already eager to assist.

Sue slowly walked around in awe, perusing the various knick-knacks. "Shoot," she said with a small snicker. "A fella could have a pretty good weekend in Robotropolis with all this." She knew she was ready to kick some lardy derrière, and it certainly showed in her emotions. Her smile soon evolved into a mischievous, toothy grin the moment she reached the cannons.

The tapir began assisting Lindy in loading up the hovercart with the essential parts. They made room for the two gigantic cannons, each weighing roughly eighty pounds. Sue walked over to one of the cannons and grabbed hold of one end. "Ready, Lindy?"

Lindy just nodded as she took her position at the opposite end.

Sue nodded. "Okay—one, two, three, LIFT!" With that, the two ladies lifted the behemoth and carried it the short distance to the hovercart, both of them straining slightly. Not only was Sue being careful not to hurt Lindy, she looked down to ensure she didn't ease the cannon down onto Sue's foot.

Lindy took a minute to catch her breath before moving over to the other cannon and taking position again.

Sue took a few deep breaths and limbered herself up before rejoining Lindy. "One, two, three, LIFT!" said Sue, and they carried the other giant cannon to the hovercart, carefully setting it down. Sue leaned against the wall for a minute, out of steam. "Ooooohhh..." Sue felt as if she had been drawn and quartered, and her arms stretched to twice the length.

"This way. That tree over there." Sue pointed to the redwood where Sue parked the hovercar, then jogged towards it. She opened the garage door, revealing her vehicle to Lindy. "There she is," Sue said, referring to the car. "Ain't she a beaut!"

Sue's hovercar, the Ecco 3195, had a yellow body that had lost its luster a long while ago, with spots of caked mud and dirt here and there. The cab had seating for two, while its lined truckbed was worn from years of use. Worn-out vinyl lettering on either end told of the Danta family's dabblings in blue-collar work: DANTAWORKS, the name of the family business, in huge letters, with ARCHITECTURE-CONSTRUCTION-ALTERATIONS below that, in smaller type. The telephone number at the very bottom, MERCIA 3399, mattered little to anyone, now that phone service had been completely obliterated.

Sue leaned against the cab, arms folded across her chest, grinning widely.

Sue nodded as she did some quick mental addition. "eightyonesixty, and figure around twentyfivethirty for the mounts..." she said quickly and softly to herself. "There are no mounts here, Lindy, just so you know. Soooo...eager for another workout? We've got to..."

"Okay, okay!" Sue said. "Easy, Lindy. Just asked if you were eager, that's all. C'mon, help me unload these babies." She climbed onto the truckbed and kneeled down, both hands gripping one of the cannons. "I wonder what that hot piece of chameleon tushie Espio is doing. Perhaps he could assist. Grab that other side there."