by TR Cameron
Usha cracked her knuckles. “A group of mercenaries operates out of a settlement they’ve claimed. A few of the younger Malniets like to hang out with them. It seems like they’d be a fairly good group for Styrris to recruit from.”
Danna nodded. “If we target them, we take care of several things at once. We reduce potential champions, eliminate a Malniet or three, and maybe even keep one to sweat for information.”
“I like it,” Ozahl replied. “I can’t see a reason not to. Does anyone disagree?” He didn’t wait for a response. “No? Good. Let’s go.”
They’d taken a circuitous route to reach their destination to avoid attention along the way from any potential lookouts. A direct tube connected the section to the dock, but many of the settlements shared connections that didn’t intersect the domed city and this was one of them. As a result, they passed through two separate living areas before they traversed a transparent cylinder that led to their target.
Ozahl was moved by being inside the tunnels again. It had been a long, long time since he’d used one, and it was entirely true to say he’d been a very different person then. The tubes had represented freedom, once. Now, they were simply a means to move from the place he wanted to be—the hub of New Atlantis—to somewhere he didn’t care about. Even if they’d headed to the settlement his family had lived in, he would have felt the same. The old man was gone and someone new had returned in his stead.
The passage opened into what had once been an airplane fuselage. They had no way to know what to expect beyond the normal hodgepodge of reclaimed vehicles that made up the living areas that circled the central city. This section ran slightly downhill as if it were stuck on a rock or something. At the far end was a heavy wooden door, featureless except for a small spyglass set in it at head height.
“Quiet or loud?” Usha asked.
“Loud,” Danna replied an instant before he did. The Champion of New Atlantis raised her hands and blasted the door inward with a bolt of force.
The mage was the quickest and had already lurched toward the doorway before the projectile had finished its flight. It crushed what was probably a guard, who stood outside another door opposite the first. This one was metal and also sported nothing but a small circle of glass. He shattered it and powered through.
It opened onto what seemed like the inside of a yacht set crosswise to their line of entry. A luxurious living room included several large couches and portholes that revealed the water beyond. He spared a moment of appreciation for whoever had made the vessel watertight before he raised a shield and moved to the right. His defense intercepted a blast of lightning that a woman in a black t-shirt, camouflage pants, and combat boots hurled at him. He sensed the others flowing into the chamber behind him and heard their shouts of alarm and anger as they were attacked in turn.
The initial fight was fast and brutal. He expanded his shield and raced at the woman to bulldoze into her. By that time, she had summoned her protection but it wasn’t enough to prevent him from pushing her out the door behind her. He slammed it shut, cast a wall of force to keep it blocked, and spun. Tanyith had stabbed his opponent in the arm and launched a kick into the man’s face. Usha and Danna fought as a team to consistently swap opponents at an unexpected moment to break through their defenses and overcome them.
He pointed at the door he’d secured. “We’ll go this way.” He dispelled his magical barrier and the entry fell open to show his enemy waiting for them. The woman’s shield absorbed his lightning attack, but the force bolts from the other three catapulted her down the long corridor behind her. She landed hard, and Usha was there in moments to drive her head into the floor and ensure that she wouldn’t join the fight anytime soon.
“Is there any way to know who’s a Malniet and who isn’t?” Ozahl asked,
Danna shrugged. “Not really. They like to play soldier so it could be any of them.”
“All righty.” He blasted the door at the far side of the hallway off its hinges with no immediate response. His normal option at moments like this would be to lead with a fireball but using such wantonly destructive magic underwater had limitations. Instead, he stuck his head cautiously around the corner and jerked it back as a blast of shadow careened into the wall. “It’s an end room. They’re in a corridor opposite this one.”
He pointed at Danna and Usha. “You go forward. We’ll keep going this way and meet you when we meet you.”
“Be careful,” his girlfriend replied, We’re not invincible yet.”
Ozahl laughed. “Against these idiots? Almost.” As the others departed, he turned to Tanyith. “I’ll go in shielded. They’ll attack me and you come in and destroy them.”
The other man nodded and the mage moved. He pushed a shield out from his skin in the shape of his body and tuned it with illusion so that he’d appear slightly away from where he physically was. It was an old trick but had made many of what might have been fatal attacks miss completely in the past. He surged forward and a beam of shadow followed him as soon as he entered the enemy’s line of sight. The room was a small lounge with a couch and two chairs on the far side. He cursed inwardly at the fact that the larger piece of furniture rested against the wall. It would have made good cover. He stopped suddenly and dropped prone, and the beam passed over him.
He watched from foot level as Tanyith ran in and dispatched the enemy with a thrown dagger and a right hook. As he pushed to his feet, he brushed dirty carpet lint from his black pants and tried not to think about how quickly mold might form in a place like this. “Onward.”
The hallway opened onto identical cabins, one after the next and all empty. They met up with Danna and Usha near the middle, which lacked a living quarter but had a ladder upward instead. It led to an opening in a higher deck. He shook his head. “Ugly.”
Danna laughed. “You’re getting conservative in your old age, love.” She created a basketball-sized orb of lightning and threw it into the room, where it detonated and delivered bolts in every direction. Several thumps, both soft and loud, issued from the ceiling. Ozahl launched himself through the opening.
He landed in the middle of four twitching people. Five knives, one blackjack, and a nasty looking spiked club lay on the deck. Three of the fallen looked the same, the product of rough upbringings and the daily need to work for their survival. The fourth was different. His clothes were better, he had more flesh on his body, and his haircut had probably cost more than anyone in the settlement made in a week. As his teammates entered the room, he pointed out his find. “He looks like a pampered Malniet to me. What do you think?”
Usha pushed on the man’s cheek with the toe of her boot and elicited a groan. “It sounds right to me. Let’s see what he has to say.”
Fortunately, the wannabe mercenary was as spineless as they had expected. Once they had him tied to a chair, the first sight of a blade made him start to babble wildly. In short order, they had names and locations of other Malniet family members as well as his opinion on potential champions. Finally, and most importantly, he gave up the way to the bolt hole in the settlement where the remaining two Malniet cousins were hiding. When they offered him the choice of death or exile, he was quick to choose the latter.
Ozahl sighed. “They don’t make nobles like they used to.” He unbound the man, opened a portal, and pushed him through it. “I have friends on the other side. They’ll keep him out of circulation until things have settled.” He closed the rift and turned to the three mercenaries who sat bound on the floor and stared daggers at him. With a shake of his head, he observed, “It’s not my fault you choose to consort with idiots. Don’t blame me for your bad decisions.”
“Will we kill them?” Usha asked,
He shrugged. “Let’s see if they can make better choices.” He knelt beside them. “Here’s the deal. As of now, you’re under contract. Your job is to stay here until Sunday. Don’t leave the settlement. People are watching the docks, so we’ll know if you break the rules. Obey, and you’ll get
cash at the end. It won’t be a fortune but a good payday. Disobey, and you’ll be in this hodgepodge pile of relics when we destroy it.”
Their eyes widened and they nodded enthusiastically. Ozahl glanced at the others. “What do you think? Should we trust them?”
“Sure,” Danna replied. “It’s easy enough to locate and kill them if they disobey.”
Usha added, “We can afford the risk.”
He looked at Tanyith, who sighed. “Yeah. You’re right. Let’s limit the killing if these idiots will let us.”
Ozahl clapped briskly. “Excellent. Now, it’s time to find the other nobles and see what they have to share before they get to play ‘Exile or Death.’”
Chapter Twenty-One
Exhausted, Cali had collapsed after her first full day of training with the agents and Nylotte, and the day after had been worse. Today, there had only been a single session because her mind and body ached like they’d been through an old-school wringer—the kind she’d seen in Bugs Bunny cartoons on the Internet. She felt almost as boneless and her muscles were mostly jelly.
Tomorrow would be spent recovering, fueling herself for the battle to come that evening, and discussing last-minute details with her allies. Tonight would be all about the presents, plus a short celebration to send her off. She’d sleep in New Atlantis in what could be her final night as matriarch of House Leblanc.
Whenever her thoughts turned to that idea, she reined them in quickly. What will be will be and worrying about it won’t change it. Only planning can alter the outcome. The words might have come from Nylotte, Sensei Ikehara, Diana, or even Zeb. All of them would have told her the same thing.
Which was why her walk through the base to Glam’s lab was filled with hope rather than despair. Of course, the fact that Rath and his Borzoi buddy Max had waited outside her door to escort her and Fyre helped. The two cavorted and ran circles around her as they made their way through the wide corridors. The Draksa feinted and snapped as they passed. The whole exchange lifted her spirits considerably. Without question, she’d step onto the battlefield far better for her days spent with the agents.
They had even given her an honorary uniform—fatigue pants and a khaki shirt. Her boots were still her own, despite Diana’s suggestion that she should allow Kayleigh to work on them. Hidden stilettos weren’t her style, and her friends were right that she was more of a danger to herself than anyone else with a pistol, concealed or otherwise.
When they arrived, Kayleigh and Diana were waiting, seated on high stools next to a plastic-topped lab table. The tech looked younger than most of the other agents, doubtless in part because of her asymmetrical blonde haircut and deliberately noticeable makeup. The lead agent gestured for her to sit and said, “We’ll try not to keep you for too long. I’m sure you’re eager to get home and into your own bed.”
She nodded. “I wouldn’t have expected to feel that way, but yeah, I am.” She climbed onto the stool at the end and Fyre found a corner to curl up in and supervise the proceedings.
Kayleigh stood in front of a bank of small lockers like those found in an amusement park or a health club. She stretched to one and pulled out a thin black vest. When she set it on the table, Cali noticed that it had a V-shaped line on it that protruded slightly from the fabric.
“Okay,” the tech said, “since you’re not likely to be shot at, this vest is all about resisting cutting. It won’t stop a determined stab with considerable weight behind it, but it should turn anything that’s less direct than that. Of course, each use will degrade its ability for the next, so consider it more a backup plan than your primary option.”
Cali nodded. “What’s that?” She pointed at the pattern she’d noticed.
The other woman grinned. “That is another secret weapon. Diana, would you care to do the honors?”
The lead agent rolled her eyes. “So, we thought you might not have found a use yet for the anti-magic deflector crystals we gave you. There are sockets in there for five of them. They cover them so they don’t hurt you if they explode, which they’ve done on one or two occasions.”
Kayleigh nodded. “They usually only crack. After we discovered they can do more than that, we started using guards. This isn’t as fashionable as the ones I’ve made for the others, but I didn’t have enough lead time to make it both effective and pretty, so I went with the first one.”
She grinned. “Thanks for that.”
The tech laughed. “I’m a gem. Everyone says so.” She gestured at the object on the table. “Gem. Get it? Honestly, you people wouldn’t know funny if it ran you over at high speed on a dark country road.” She pushed the vest out of the way and placed four small spheres on the plastic surface. Each featured a stripe of a different color. “Red is incendiary. Blue, flashbang. Green, tear gas. Yellow, smoke. You set them off by shattering them on the ground.”
The blonde turned to retrieve something else from the lockers behind her, and Diana pointed at the orbs, each of which would fit easily in her palm with room to spare. “Don’t be misled by how small they are. They pack a serious punch. And you’ll want to be way out of range if you use the tear gas. It sucks. I’m sure that Glam put us through extra testing rounds simply to be a jerk.”
“Lies,” the tech responded. “Science requires precision.” She set a wide belt onto the table. “This will be an improvement on what you have. It has room for potions, sheaths, a pouch, and four places to slot your mini grenades in. You should practice and memorize where they all are ahead of time, though, until it’s natural to retrieve the one you want.” She pointed at the large round buckle, which displayed her family’s symbol, a compass in blue and gold. “And an extra surprise if you need it.” She pulled and twisted, and the buckle came off in her hand. “Press the center and…” She did so, and a curved blade popped out to cover the northern hemisphere of the circle. When she pushed again, the sharp part withdrew into the device.
Diana whistled. “Damn, Glam, we need some of those.”
She laughed. “You’re dangerous enough already.”
Cali shook her head. “I can’t imagine where I’d be likely to use such a thing but it feels good to know it’s there.”
Kayleigh took two small sheaths from the lockers, each of which had a curved handle protruding from it. She pulled one of them out to reveal a keen-edged throwing knife that looked to have been cut from a single piece of flat metal. “These go at your lower back where the agents often carry a backup pistol. I’m not sure if you’re any good with them, but Rath insisted.”
Diana laughed. “He would.”
“I’m probably better with the knives than a gun, anyway,” she said with a nod. “Which might not be saying all that much. There’s no way I can thank you enough for all of this.” Fyre sent a wave of affirmation, presumably at her assessment of her pistol proficiency.
The tech shook her head. “This is what I do for fun. No thanks required. And since the boss had little or nothing to do with it, there’s no need to thank her, either.”
The agent laughed and shrugged. “She’s not wrong. This is all her.”
Kayleigh grinned. “Okay, one more present—something I’ve been working on for the agents. I have to warn you, though, it’s a prototype.”
Diana groaned. “That means she’s using you as a guinea pig. I’d run for the hills and fast if I were you.”
“Nonsense,” Glam quipped. “All my experiments are worthwhile for everyone involved.”
Cali grinned at the banter as the boss replied, “Like the netgun?”
The woman waved a dismissive hand. “That wasn’t so much an experiment as a field test of a terrible idea—your terrible idea, as I recall.” She turned to face Cali and spoke over Diana’s attempted reply. “So, we use capacitors on the agents’ vests to deal with electrical attacks, both technological and magical. I didn’t know how that would work with your magic and didn’t have time to investigate, so those seemed like a bad option. Instead, I created this.” She
dug in the locker again and slid a disc about the size of a hockey puck to her. “It activates on impact and creates a magnetic field that attracts electricity.”
“Have you tested this before?” Diana asked.
The tech shrugged. “Some smaller versions. It seems to work as intended.”
The agent shook her head. “It’s up to you, Cali, but if you do accept it, you should be ready to use it only in a dire circumstance. Even then, take my advice and throw it as far away from you as you can.”
Glam sighed dramatically. “Luddite.”
Cali took the object, along with all the other items on the table that Kayleigh helpfully slid closer to her. She slotted the spheres into their receptacles and positioned the sheaths. Finally, she put the disc in the pouch. At the tech’s nod of approval, she shrugged and said, “You never know what might make the difference.”
Diana stood and stretched. “True that. Now, how about one last meal and a drink before you go to show New Atlantis who’s boss?”
She and Fyre arrived late at the Leblanc mansion. The house was quiet, and since Jenkins recognized her immediately, no alarms sounded. Somewhere along the line, this had started to feel more like home than New Orleans. Cali wasn’t sure she liked it that way. Even if she won, she couldn’t see spending her life in such a small place. She could still visit wherever and whenever she wanted by portals, but it wasn’t the same, at least not in her head.
The Draksa leaned against her leg and she patted him absently. “I don’t know, buddy. It feels weird to be here.”
He snorted softly. “Things are changing. After tomorrow, nothing will be the same. Either we’ll lose and be on the run, or you’ll be getting ready to meet your brother.” She appreciated that he didn’t mention the other possibility of failure that resulted in one or both of them dying.