by Stone, J.
Alice turned her focus back onto the corpsman, “How did this happen?”
“Well, Operative,” he began, “By all accounts, it was a fairly unorthodox robbery. They had four men stage a robbery upstairs, but they didn’t actually take anything. There is a security feature whereby all the vault doors are locked when anyone presses the button under the counter.
“According to witnesses inside at the time, the men didn’t even attempt to open the door. They just waited and kept looking out a window at the front of the bank. Simultaneously they had people get inside the safe deposit box room through an underground tunnel. From there they were able to get into the vault door.
“Apparently the bank manager had gone missing the day before - they used his gene sample to get into the vault. Presumably, he gave them information on how to get past the security systems as well. Eventually the men upstairs left, and the ones down here left through the tunnel. We haven’t been able to trace back the tunnel, since they collapsed it after they were done.”
“There were several bodies outside,” she noted. “Were any of them the robbers?”
“One ma’am,” he answered. “Three guards were killed aside from the one they mutated outside.”
“Hmm. What did they take?” Alice asked, as she continued to look over the scattered pictures.
“They pretty much cleared out the vault, ma’am,” he answered. “Oh, and the contents of three safe deposit boxes were taken as well.”
This piqued the operative’s interest, and she looked up from the table. “Who did the boxes belong to?” she asked.
“Not sure, ma’am. I’ll go collect that information now,” he told her before walking out of the room.
Alice and Edwin took a few minutes to look through the other photographs taken during the bank robbery. Among the photographs, Alice identified Erynn, Dr. Rowland, Germ, Tern, as well as three unknown men and one woman. One of the men she recognized as one of the dead men she passed earlier, but she was unsure of the others. Edwin picked one up in particular and stared at it for some time.
“Have you found something, Mr. Hollow?” Alice eventually asked.
“I know this man,” he said, handing her the picture. “That’s Hirim Burgan. Our intelligence teams suggest he’s heavily involved in the Chromework Confederacy.”
“Hmm,” the operative said eyeing the photograph. “Perhaps the Clover woman is indeed linked to this little rebellion after all.”
Picking up a picture of the unknown woman and showing it to Edwin, Alice asked, “And this one? Do you recognize her?”
Edwin studied the image for a moment before responding, “No. Not familiar with her. You want me to look into her?”
“Please,” Alice said, tossing the image back to the table. She picked up a picture of a man with an eye patch over his left eye and a bandanna concealing the rest of his face, and she continued, “Him as well.”
Edwin nodded and collected several of the pictures from the table. Alice looked back through the photographs scattered about the tabletop and spotted one of the automaton. In the image, the bot was being attacked by the automaton guard in the vault, and in another photograph was disassembled in an array of pieces on the floor.
The corpsman that had led them to the bank soon returned with the information she had requested, “Ma’am,” he began. “Box one, zero, three belonged to Markus Morrissey, box six, seven, two was Hollis Porter’s, and Garland Webber owned box eight, nine, four.”
Ignoring the report for a moment, Alice asked, “Did your men find the automaton in the vault?”
“No, ma’am,” he answered. “Just the bodies you already saw, as well as an unconscious guard downstairs.”
“Very well,” she continued. “Have your men retrieve the box owners, corpsman. We will need to discuss with them what the heretic and her rebels took.”
Alice left Edwin to look over the remainder of the photographs, while she headed out to look at the vault. Before she made her way there, however, she was approached by a young woman.
“Operative?” the young woman said.
“Yes, what is it?” Alice asked.
“I think I might have some information for you,” she answered.
Alice nodded and again asked, “And what is that?”
“I’m a teller here,” the woman explained. “Marjorie. One of our customers opened a safe deposit box the morning of the robbery, but it turns out that the woman was in Cultwick City and couldn’t possibly have been here to do so.”
“Is that right?” the operative inquired.
“Yes, ma’am,” Marjorie continued. “A woman claiming to be Countess Upton came in with all the proper papers, opened the new box, and had it charged to her account. This morning, however, the countess contacted the bank in Cultwick City about the charge, disputing that she had asked for the box. I took a look at our surveillance, and I believe it may have been the heretic that actually acquired the box.”
“I’ll need to see what is inside that box, Marjorie,” Alice explained. “Can you have someone open it for me?”
“I’ll get someone on it, ma’am,” Marjorie said before heading downstairs.
A young corpsman with a flustered looking gentleman approached her before she could go investigate anything further.
“Operative Page,” the corpsman said. “This is Hollis Porter, the postmaster here in Ash Cloud.
“Might there be a room I could use nearby, corpsman?” Alice asked.
“Of course, ma’am,” he said and guided her and the postmaster to a closed room. He showed them inside, where there was a glossy wooden table and a pair of matching chairs.
“Corpsman,” Alice began. “Please have Mr. Morrissey and Dr. Webber wait just outside when they arrive.”
The young man nodded and exited the room. She then took a seat and extended her hand gently forward indicating for Hollis to sit opposite her. He was a portly man with frumpy clothes and balding, blonde hair. He wore thick-framed spectacles, and she noted that he was beginning to perspire quite heavily, as he sat.
“Mr. Porter,” Alice started, “Have they explained enough for you to understand that in addition to the bank robbery some of the safe deposit boxes were broken into and that one of those was yours?”
“I was told that, yes,” he answered.
“Good,” she continued. “What I need to know from you is what you kept in that box. We’re hunting down the perpetrators, and it may be helpful to know what they were after and where they will go next.”
“I really didn’t have anything special in there, ma’am,” he told her.
“Well, Mr. Porter, I didn’t ask what was special in the box,” she stated flatly. She narrowed her eyes and continued, “I asked you to tell me is what was in it. Do you think you can do that for me?”
Perspiring more, Hollis said, “Uh, of course, Operative. Of course. I just meant I can’t imagine why they would have gone for my box is all. I just kept a few copies of identification papers and a backup ledger of the shipments coming into and out of Ash Cloud as well as some of the surrounding territory.”
“Well, if what they took was a backup ledger then I’ll need to take a look at your primary ledger, Mr. Porter. Go and retrieve it for me now.”
Hollis stood up from the table and gave an awkward sort of bow to the operative. Alice stood and escorted him to the door where a corpsman was waiting with another man.
“Operative Page,” he said, “This is Markus Morrissey.”
“Ah, yes. Mr. Morrissey,” Alice stated. “Please come in.”
“I’m a very busy man, Operative,” Markus told her as he entered the room. “I’d like to get this over with, so I can get on with this shit of a day.”
“Oh, I don’t intend to keep you too long, Mr. Morrissey,” she explained, sitting with him at the table. “But speak to me like that again, and I assure you it will be the last thing you utter.”
Markus stared at her, attempting to judge the situa
tion and the predicament he may well have got himself into. He ultimately decided to keep quiet and let her talk.
“Now then,” she continued. “I just need to know what you kept in your safe deposit box.”
“I kept all my schematics down there,” Markus said. “Every last design I’ve come up with. This bank was supposed to protect them, and now I’ve lost everything. Whoever took them could remake them now. They stole my intellectual property!”
“Mmm. Is there anything in particular that you’re concerned about them taking, Mr. Morrissey?” Alice asked.
“That new turret design for starters,” he said.
“And what was that?” the operative inquired.
“We were about to start building them in mass for the Cultwick military,” Morrissey explained. “My factory practically single handedly arms the corps. Plus my weapons are supposed to help these idiots protect the bank.”
“They don’t seem to have aided them very much, Mr. Morrissey.” She stood up and walked to the door. “Thank you for your time.”
Alice showed the disgruntled man out of the room, and outside she saw a man that she recognized as Dr. Webber waiting for her. Alongside him was the teller that had told her about the countess’ box.
“Dr. Webber, please come inside,” Alice requested. Turning her attention to the teller she asked, “Is the box open, Marjorie?”
“Yes, Operative,” she responded. “The box has been laid out on the table in the room downstairs. You can look at it whenever you’re ready.”
“Thank you, Marjorie,” Alice said. “I’ll take a look soon.”
The operative closed the door to find Dr. Webber already seated at the table with a few pages spread out on the table. She took a seat and began looking over the papers splayed out before her.
“What have you brought me, doctor?” she asked.
“Copies of what was in my box,” he answered. “I assume that’s why you had me brought down here. We may have a real situation on our hands here, Operative. I expect Cultwick will be very interested in you retrieving what those bank robbers took from me.” He firmly planted his finger over one of the pages in particular as he said this.
Alice looked down at the paper to see the words, ‘SBP Trials 130 B’ printed along the top. On it was an extremely complicated looking chemical formula.
“What exactly am I looking at, doctor?” she asked.
“This is fuel for the fire of rebellion,” the doctor explained.
“Perhaps we can leave hyperbole out of the conversation, Dr. Webber,” she said. “What is this?”
“I’m not being hyperbolic,” he stated. “This is the formula for the cure to the Sweeper Bot Plague.”
Alice looked up from the papers and stared into his eyes. “I had the understanding that you were ordered to destroy all of this information, doctor. It appears to me that you kept at least two copies of it.”
“I thought it prudent to maintain at least one copy of the formula in case I ever needed to reproduce it,” he explained.
“And the other?” she asked.
“I suppose my pride wouldn’t allow me to destroy it,” he replied.
“Pride,” she scoffed. “Lucky for you it’s not my place to judge your behavior at this point, but know that if you have brought dishonor to Cultwick it will be you who pays the price for it.”
Alice abandoned all attempts of proper etiquette and abandoned the doctor in the room. She proceeded down to the safe deposit box room. In the middle of the room was a table on top of which was the box that the bank teller had mentioned. She flipped open the lid of the box to find a small mechanical device enclosed.
Listed on the contraption were the numbers, ‘1937.’ She stared at it for a few moments, but soon decided to ignore it momentarily and move into the vault. When she arrived inside, she saw the giant automaton that was supposed to guard the vault. It looked quite powerful indeed, but it had been bested by the chromesmith. She walked behind the construct to find a long paper trail with the message, ‘I’m a dumb robot’ printed out repeatedly.
She happened to look again at the device in her hand, which listed the numbers, ‘3938.’ Curious, she walked back to the room and watched as the numbers flipped back to ‘3937.’
Edwin soon came down to the room to join her and asked, “Did you find anything?”
Alice smiled at him and said, “I believe she left me a means to track her. And you? Did you discover anything from the dead robber?”
“He was nothing special,” Edwin said. “Definitely a member of the rebellion though. It also looks like he may have been a chromite miner, which would support the suspicions that the confederacy is based in Chrome City.”
“Very well,” Alice noted. “Anything else?”
“The corpsman mentioned them watching out a window,” he began.
“Yes?” she inquired.
“I believe they may have been sending messages,” Edwin explained. “Let me show you.”
Edwin led Alice back to the main area and to a window near the front of the building. Smeared vertically down the windowpane was a red mark.
Pointing out the window Edwin said, “There’s a window up in that house with a strange paper shoved into the pane. Perhaps we should investigate that.”
Alice smiled to him and said, “I think you’re quite right, Mr. Hollow. Dispatch a corpsman to retrieve the residents.”
Chapter 20. Rowland the Scientist
They had finally made their way back to Chrome City and to Hirim’s bar, the Arcadia Saloon. The bags had been emptied and their contents piled onto the table in the back room of the saloon. Erynn, Rowland, Germ, Vincent, Pearl, Hirim, and a couple of local rebels stood around the table staring at what they had accomplished and thinking what they had done to accomplish it.
They had not yet opened nor identified the bags from the safe deposit boxes yet, primarily because they were too overwhelmed with the immense amount of coins and various other jewels heaped onto the table in front of them. The bag holding Tern was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, and Rowland noticed Erynn eyeing it mournfully from time to time.
“Can you fix him, my dear?” Rowland asked of Erynn.
“No,” she answered. “At least not yet. I’m going to probably have to completely replace his chest. The screen and key input are completely borked, and the punch card reader is torn to shreds. Might even need to rebuild his chassis from the ground up. Luckily I think I can afford the parts he’ll need now.”
Pearl, meanwhile, gawked at the overflowing mound of coins strewn before them, and eventually asked, “How much do ya think that is?”
“Enough,” Hirim succinctly stated. “Enough to hurt them. Enough to fight them. Now, let’s see what those safe deposit boxes held,” Hirim told the others.
Rowland picked up one of the bags and placed it on another table that was pressed up against the side of the room. Inside, he found drawings of several different weapons and details on how to construct them. One of the weapons, he noted, was an extremely large and intimidating piece of machinery. He looked over to Erynn who was still staring at the bag with Tern inside of it.
“Ryn, my dear,” he began. “Come take a look at these.”
She came over to him, as he handed her the papers. She stared at them for a few moments, shuffling through the various pages.
“These are weapon schematics,” she explained. “And this one,” she said, pointing to the page with the large gun. “This looks ridiculously impressive. You could destroy armies with something like this.”
Hearing her assessment, Hirim walked over to her and said, “Let me take a look at that.”
Erynn handed him the paper, and he seemed impressed with what he saw.
“Everett,” he said to a young man in the corner, “Go down and talk to Emma. See if she can get started on building something like this for us.
“You got it,” Everett said, taking the schematic and leaving the back room.
>
“Who’s Emma?” Erynn asked.
“We’ve got her working on constructing us some weapons,” Hirim explained. “The two of you working together probably could get a lot accomplished for us.” He turned back to the table and continued, “What else do we have?”
Pearl looked up from the bag she had been sorting through and said, “This one was yer postmaster’s. It’s got various I.D. papers and some sorta ledger.”
“Anything interesting?” he asked.
“Just started lookin’, but I’ll let ya know if I see anythin’,” Pearl explained.
“What about the doctor’s things?” Hirim asked. “We find those yet?”
Germ spoke up next, holding up a piece of paper. “I found something, sir,” he told Hirim, “but I haven’t a clue as to what it is. Perhaps Master Rowland could take a look.”
The rat handed the paper over to Rowland, who was forced to adjust his spectacles to clearly read what was scribbled on the paper. It was full of mathematical equations and drawings of genetic diagrams. The paper was titled, ‘SBP Trials 130 B.’
“This is...” Rowland began, “This is... so simple. So... completely, and ridiculously simple...”
The others waited for him to finish, but when he didn’t Germ prodded him, “It didn’t look simple to me, sir”
“Of course not,” Rowland bluntly stated before looking up at the others. “This formula… It is the cure for the Sweeper Bot Plague.”
“There isn’t any cure though,” Erynn reminded him. “That’s what you always told us.”
“Well, yes, but that is because the empire always said that one did not exist,” the professor explained. “This formula, however, is the ridiculously simple cure for it.”
“There’s really a cure for this thing, doc?” Vincent asked.
“So it seems,” Rowland responded. “There is one strange thing, though. This document is from fourteen years ago. To my mind that would suggest they found this cure fourteen years ago.”
“You’re saying they had this for fourteen years and have yet to cure a single case of the plague?” Erynn asked.