And they had a lot of distance between Welles Bay and Beylan. Spies might not have powerful ships, but they had enough time to send a telegraph message to their comrades and summon parts of the Iron Guild fleet.
“Hello?” Kelvin said, waving his hand in front of Shane's face.
Shane shook his head and tried to clear his mind. He was being far too paranoid for his own good. This was probably nothing, just some curious eyes that would stray to something else in time. They had business to attend to, and they couldn't waste time messing around with imagined problems in his head.
But the further they traveled into the depths of the dome, the more that feeling intensified. Shane barely registered the conversations passing between the rest of his party. In the back of his mind he felt a sense of unease, a feeling like they were being stalked. He looked back at Brandon, who shrugged.
The gesture did nothing to reassure him.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Brandon noticed Shane's change in demeanor, but he continued to act like everything was normal. They couldn't do anything about the spies following them in a safe zone, so why tip them off? Maybe they could figure out some way to turn the tables, or to at least slip away.
They reached the central market of the dome and went about their business, stopping at the various stalls to look for trade goods at a fair price. Most weren't very large, but put together they represented a stunning amount of variety. Metals, minerals, ore, gems, jewelry, ivory, spices and other luxuries, guns, blades, decorations, outfits, equipment, and hundred of other trinkets and useful items. The business of the dome's bazaar contrasted with the relative quiet outside.
His group found the blueprint they were looking for and purchased it, along with an assortment of luxury goods that would fetch a high price in Beylan's markets. More importantly, they'd fit in the hold with little trouble.
But the feeling wouldn't leave him. Maybe it was just a sixth sense, or maybe it came from one of his perks, but Brandon felt like he had eyes in the back of his head. They were being tracked, followed, and their pursuers didn't want to let his group out of their sight.
Who did they work for, and what did they want? The obvious answer was that they were somehow connected to the guild, but why had they attracted so much attention? Everyone wore their masks around here as a matter of practicality, and none of the other parties seemed to have aroused so much suspicion.
The Great Game, as they liked to call it. The world of spies and espionage, where various guilds jockeyed for small tidbits of information, anything that could give them an advantage over their enemies. Brandon had dipped his toes into the Great Game, but never went very deep. It led to a very dangerous world, where death and destruction lurked around every corner. A careless word, a wrong assumption and one's world would come crashing down around them.
And the Iron Guild dominated the Great Game. Others might be fish trying to devour each other and avoid being eaten themselves, but the Iron Guild were sharks. Disaster swam in their wake, and being consumed wasn't a possibility. It was an inevitability.
Brandon had learned to be wary, and he questioned the wisdom of Rho trying to beat the guild at their own game. They might have an ace in the hole, but the Iron Guild always seemed to find ways to avoid trouble.
And he also wondered whether Rho's spy would be able to solve all their problems, or if they even had access to all the information. If he was in charge of the Iron Guild he would disperse information, compartmentalize so that a traitor couldn't completely undermine the organization. If their leader was smart enough to do that…
“We're going to have to be careful,” he said to Shane as they left the dome and headed out onto the streets.
“Once we're at sea we'll be fine,” Shane replied, though Brandon thought he heard his friend's voice waver a bit.
“That didn't sound too convincing.”
“Yeah, well, I know better than to underestimate the guild. If it is the guild.”
Brandon pulled down his goggles and didn't say anything more until they cast off.
As the ship pulled away from the dock the dust began to fade away. Brandon moved up to the observation deck and watched the seas behind them. The skies were overcast, the seas rough in spots. At first glance it looked like just another dreary day on the ocean.
But the potential for pursuit made him stand at attention.
“What are you looking for?” Simone asked as she joined him.
“Pursuers.”
“You think that we're being followed?”
He leaned on the railing. “I know we were being followed back in Welles Bay. I'm wondering if they're going to continue to track us.”
“I didn't see anything.”
“Yeah, they were good. I had a hard time spotting them myself, but they were following us all through the dome. And-”
“What's this about us being followed?” another voice joined in.
Brandon glanced over his shoulder to see Jamie walk up the stairs. “Do you not believe me? Because Shane saw it too, after I pointed it out to him.”
“And you never bothered to point it out to us?”
“I didn't want to have nine people looking around in all directions and tipping them off,” Brandon shrugged.
“I didn't see anything,” Simone said. “Of course, I'm not as experienced as you, but...”
“It's not a big deal. Like I said before, they were pretty hard to spot. They knew what they were doing. But when you know how to watch the shadows...”
“I know how to watch the shadows, and I didn't see anything. So now who's the untrusting and paranoid one?”
Brandon did't respond, but now he began to doubt himself. He had seen it. He knew it. Shane had seen it as well and acknowledged it. Brandon had been on the run from the guild long enough to know when they were being watched.
But Jamie's guild had gone through the same troubles, and yet she hadn't sensed anything was amiss. Was he losing his mind?
“There doesn't need to be more than two people up here. I'm getting under cover,” Simone said. Before Brandon could say anything she had already descended and shut the hatch.
“What was that about?” Jamie said.
Brandon shrugged again. “I have no idea. She's up to something, though, although maybe I'm just saying that because I'm untrusting and paranoid.”
Jamie sighed.
“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that,” Brandon told her.
“No, it's fine. I shouldn't have said what I did either. And you were right when you told me that on the one run to Dux. I'm pretty cynical at this point.”
“I can't blame you for that. Your guild was on the run for a long time, and then the Iron Guild destroyed it. Not to mention having several friends quit.”
“I know, but is that really a reason for it?”
Brandon shrugged. “You know what? It's been over a year since my friends quit, and I'm still carrying a grudge over it. You're not even close to the limit.”
“That's not a reason to take out my frustration on the rest of the guild. Or on you.”
“It's fine.”
“No it's not. Not really. And it's not about that either.”
“Then what is it about?” Brandon asked.
She sighed again. “I think I'm losing my edge.”
“Huh?”
“I think I'm losing my edge, and that's why I didn't see them,” Jamie said.
“Oh.”
They stood in silence for a few moments.
“Why do you think that, though? Maybe you just missed them. It's not like that hasn't happened to me before.”
“That's what I thought. But Shane saw them. So why wasn't I able to?”
“Because I pointed them out to him. He had no idea they were there until I did that,” Brandon said, wondering what this was about.
What did it matter, anyhow? Everyone played roles in the team. A single player couldn't become dominant. Everyone had weaknesses they needed t
o cover and strengths to help their comrades. Making them work together made all the difference between having a successful guild and being doomed to failure.
“But after being on the run from the Iron Guild for so long, why did I not see it?”
“Because they're good. And they're very sneaky. Remember what happened in Kromus? We had no idea they were coming until you warned us. And Shane nearly shot you.”
“Wait, what?”
Brandon grinned. “Yeah, he told me this after we finished the mission. When you were standing at the top of the stairs, he didn't see you at first. When he did you surprised him so much that he would have shot you if he had a gun.”
“Oh,” Jamie said, and a moment later she laughed.
The sound made Brandon feel a little better. The conversation had become too morose, even for him.
“But really why do you think that you're losing your edge?” he asked. “Just because you didn't see something one time.”
“Because. Whenever there was danger around I seemed to know about it. Maybe it was just intuition, but I seemed to be able to figure out when we were in danger, even without the sentinel specialization.”
Brandon nodded. “Yeah, that seems to be pretty common among veteran players. It's probably because we've played so long that we know what to expect. We know how things are supposed to work, and we know when things seem wrong. It's not a skill, a perk or a game element. It's simple human intuition.”
“And mine failed me.”
“Well, you're not the only one that's failed before. I've had plenty of times when I guessed wrong.”
“Mine's a little… different.”
“Different how?”
“I've always been able to figure out when the situation isn't right. I think that's part of the reason Frostwind managed to avoid suspicion as long as it did. I would see something or hear something, and alarm bells would go off in my head. I can't explain it, other than believing it's simple human intuition, just like you said.”
“So what about it?”
“I think I'm losing it,” Jamie said. “Ever since Frostwind disbanded...”
“Or ever since you joined our guild, is that what you're trying to say?” Brandon asked.
Jamie didn't answer.
“Look,” he said, “do you think that joining the guild made you weaker? That we're making you weaker?”
“Oh, no. No. Absolutely not. I'm not blaming you guys for any of this. The guild is fine. But now I'm starting to wonder where I belong. Or if losing my edge is going to hurt the guild.”
“You're still a skilled fighter. And you know what you're doing,” Brandon said. “I'd say that counts for a lot.”
“But still...”
“Everyone has a place and a role inside the guild, even if we haven't figured it out yet,” he said. “That's kind of what the skill system is about, right? Finding what temperament and what specialization best suits you. If you try something and find out you don't like it? Then go to the hall of records and get it changed. I'm a sentinel because I like it, and I'm good with it. Same for Kelvin being a merchant, or Bailey being an engineer, or Shane being a helmsman.”
“I guess.”
“What's your specialization? I don't think I ever asked you that.”
“Acrobat,” she said.
“Huh, so maybe you should have been the one climbing all over the roof and the top floors.”
“Climbing, or falling like you were?” she said.
Brandon had to laugh. “Yeah, I'm not the most graceful shadow. But still, that's a skill and a role in the guild that we need to fill. And you're not the only one trying to find a place. Everyone is. Ryan, Corey, Simone, and Jean are as well.”
“I guess.”
“Actually, I think the guilds are trying to find their place in this world as well,” he said. “Everyone's tired of being ruled over by the Iron Guild, but what happens when we push them back? I think a lot of people are trying to figure that out.”
“Thanks. That's actually pretty reassuring,” Jamie said. Brandon saw her smile out of the corner of his eye.
“Good. Because I actually just made that up as I went along. Said a bunch of things that popped into my head. Not sure if any of it made any sense, but it sounded good, right?”
“You're horrible.”
“Well, just remember that when people accuse you of being a cynic,” he said. “You're not the only one aboard.”
“So Brandon and Shane think we're being followed, is that right?” Bailey said. She checked the gauges to make sure the engines continued to run steady.
“According to Shane they spotted someone following us in the dome,” Kelvin said. He glanced at one of the instruments, then stepped away.
“And he didn't bother telling us?”
“Said he didn't want to panic us, and he wasn't sure about it. Who knows, maybe they were just seeing things.”
“Seeing things? One of them maybe. But both of them? Especially Brandon,” she said. “Do you actually think they're making it up?”
“Nah. But they might be exaggerating.”
“How do you exaggerate someone following us? Either they're following us or they're not.”
“Maybe they were going in the same direction?”
“Yeah, I bet. There were others headed to the markets, but he didn't overreact when it came to them.
Kelvin shrugged. At this point he didn't know what to think. He trusted Brandon's instincts, but even if he had seen something, what were their pursuers trying to accomplish? As far as most players were concerned, Welles Bay was almost in the middle of nowhere. Did the Iron Guild really have enough time and resources to devote them here? They already had issues dealing with all the smugglers trying to get into and out of Beylan.
“So we're being followed. What then?” he said.
“Being followed could mean any number of things. They might be curious. They might think we're smuggling something, and they'll try to follow us and pass that information onto their comrades. Or...”
“Or?”
Bailey shrugged. “Or they might have something else planned. Maybe they're just trying to track us, or they might be trying to herd us in a certain direction. They could have friends.”
“Friends for what? To stop and board us? In the middle of nowhere?”
“That's the place to do it. There's no one around here to help us or stop them, if they are the guild. And if not but they're connected, then maybe they want to play pirate.”
“Well, they could have picked a better target.”
“I don't think they grasp what they're up against,” she said. “Remember that we shrouded the guns in tarps to protect them from the dust. They probably think they're cargo stacks, or at the most a couple of steam cannons. And if they have friends they'd easily be able to overwhelm us.”
“Unfortunately for them, that might not end so well,” Kelvin said. “The question is whether we can afford to fight or not.”
“We can't afford to get stopped. And we're anonymous, so the guild won't be able to trace the vessel back to us.”
“There's only one ship in the entire world that looks like this, unless I'm missing something.”
Bailey shrugged. “They still have to find it, then figure out who it belongs to. And it's going to stay anonymous in port, so...”
Kelvin saw her point, but he couldn't shake the bad feeling lingering in the back of his mind. If they were forced into a fight so many things could go wrong, even if they won.
Brandon straightened up as he saw something on the horizon, steaming toward them at full speed.
“What?” Jamie said.
He pointed and handed over his binoculars. “Looks like we have company. And they're pretty fast.”
“They're catching up to us,” she commented.
That was notable, though he was pretty sure that their ship's engines weren't running at full power. If they stoked the boilers they might be able to outrun their pursuer
.
“Looks like it might have a deck gun.”
“Can I see those?” he asked.
Jamie handed the binoculars back to him, and Brandon took another look. Sure enough he saw a steam cannon, along with several black shapes moving around it.
Brandon grabbed the phone line to the navigation deck. “Shane we've got a chaser off our stern, gaining on us, and it looks like they're getting ready to open fire.”
“I hear you. We'll see what they're going to do.”
Jamie tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. Brandon looked through his binoculars, expecting to see open water, but instead he spotted two ships of the same make and model steaming toward their bow. Both had their gun crews moving as well.
“Uh, Shane?” he said. “We might have a problem.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Shane spotted the pair of interlopers as soon as Brandon pointed them out and went into action immediately. He reached over and pulled the lever for the ship's siren, calling the rest of the crew to their battle stations.
The phone line from the engine room rang.
“Shane, what's up?” Bailey asked.
“We've got company. One chaser from the stern. Two more coming at us from the front. Is Ryan there with you?”
“He just stepped in. Kelvin just left to man one of the guns.”
“Got it. Stoke the boilers to full power. We might need as much as we can get,” he said.
“Understood,” Bailey said, and hung up.
“Heading to the bow gun,” Brandon said as he hurried down the steps along with Jamie.
Simone moved to the observation deck, and Jean moved to her station on the bridge.
“Don't stand too close to me,” he instructed. “If they managed to hit me then I don't want you getting caught up in the blast as well. We need someone else to steer the ship.”
“OK,” Jean said, though she sounded nervous.
Shane focused his attention forward. She felt nervous, but it wasn't like he was immune to it either. This would be their first test of the ship in combat, and they didn't even have all their weaponry. Torpedoes could provided them with a critical edge, but…
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