Metamorphosis

by Marty Chan

“We can’t afford to wait,” Amina declared. “We can’t be sure which of Ba Tian’s generals are still at large.”

  Tesla stroked his chin. “He requires the nano-dust, the particles that he used to jump between dimensions. I believe Thomas Edison’s hunters confiscated the material from Ole Lukoje when they had him in custody. Most likely, the nano-dust is in Mr. Edison’s laboratory.”

  Ehrich straightened up. “If we get the dust, I can get home.”

  “Unless Ole Lukoje has it already,” Amina said.

  Mr. Serenity drummed his fingers on his belly. “So many variables. Did he retrieve the nano-dust? If he did, why would he still be here?”

  “I’m betting my life he’s in New York,” Ehrich said. “If we could talk to someone in Demon Watch, we might find out if the nano-dust is secure.”

  “I don’t think we have any allies left,” Tesla said. “We had Charlie, but we know what happened to him.”

  “Charlie? Is that the boy in the coma?” Mr. Serenity asked.

  Ehrich stared down at his plate. Guilt began to punch at his stomach, threatening to bring up the dinner he had just eaten. He recalled how Charlie had risked his life to save him and Ehrich had repaid him by using his unconscious body as bait to lure Kifo out. He hated himself for what he had done.

  “We have no other options. That’s why we need to get into the tunnel,” Amina said. “For all we know, Ba Tian’s generals are already down there.”

  Tesla rubbed his belly. “I’m with Mr. Serenity on this, Amina. If Ba Tian’s soldiers secured the exoskeletons, all of New York would know it. Without Ba Tian and the generals, whatever army is left here would have gone into hiding.”

  “What if Ole Lukoje uses the nano-dust to summon Ba Tian’s army?” Amina asked.

  Ehrich shook his head. “I saw his technology in action. I think he can only transport one or two people at a time.”

  “Then what if he jumps into Demon Gate? Gets there and opens the portal for Ba Tian’s remaining forces in the other dimensions?”

  “You’re assuming he’d still be loyal to Ba Tian,” Ehrich pointed out. “I think Ole Lukoje is more of a survivor. Without Ba Tian, he’d look out for himself.”

  Tesla nodded. “Besides, opening a second portal in Demon Gate would be an unwise move.”

  “Why?” Amina asked.

  “I’ve seen what happens when someone attempts to open another dimensional portal near the Demon Gate. A traveller came through one time with a device and set it off by accident.”

  “Tell us what happened, my friend,” Mr. Serenity urged.

  “The two fields ripped the fabric of time and space. Whoever was caught in the distortion vortex was torn apart. It took the hunters two weeks to clean up the mess, but they never could quite get rid of the odour.”

  Ehrich stood up. “Our best plan of action is to track down Ole Lukoje and his nano-dust. That will get Dash and me home.”

  Amina crossed her arms. “Waste of time, Ehrich. We need to destroy the exoskeletons.”

  “The war is over.”

  “Not for me!”

  Mr. Serenity placed his beefy hand on Amina’s shoulder. “We should save our fighting for the enemy. Not each other.”

  Tesla backed him up. “I agree. Let’s take a moment to consider what options we have.”

  Ehrich and Amina said nothing. The tension in the air was thick. Mr. Serenity walked to the counter, picked up a china teapot, and poured steaming liquid into bone-white cups at the oval table. “I think some tea might be in order.”

  “Fragrant,” Tesla said, trying to ease the tension. “Which world did you get this from?”

  “I can’t remember. Amina would. Can you tell us?”

  She shambled to the table and leaned over the steaming pot to sniff. “Rizenberries from Saltzenwendt.”

  Mr. Serenity smiled. “Ah, yes. Good nose. I remember the peddler from that dimension. She spoke highly of their beverages.”

  “Well, I do hope we can find more of this tea,” Tesla said.

  Mr. Serenity fell silent.

  “Did I say something wrong?”

  “Salzenwendt fell to Ba Tian’s forces. There’s nothing but scorched earth there now,” Amina said.

  They sipped their tea in silence. Ehrich stared at his cup. An idea formed like the swirl of cream expanding in the tea. He looked up.

  “Kifo worked with Ole Lukoje. They were in contact with each other. He would know Ole Lukoje’s hiding spots.”

  “Yes, but Kifo is dead,” Amina pointed out.

  Ehrich recalled his hand in the death of the assassin. Kifo had possessed Ning Shu, Ba Tian’s daughter, who had rebelled against her father and joined Ehrich’s group. As Ning Shu, Kifo was able to take command of the generals on the Oriental Clipper airship. Ehrich’s group had fought the generals and soldiers for control of the airship. In the battle, Kifo had died in Ning Shu’s body. Though they had lost a valuable ally, they had defeated the assassin and recovered the Infinity Coil.

  “We don’t know exactly how the medallion works, but what if there’s a connection between Kifo and all the souls he took? Maybe they could read or hear his thoughts. What if they know what he knew? We could reach out to Ning Shu in the Infinity Coil. Ask if she can tell us where Ole Lukoje might be hiding.”

  Mr. Serenity scratched his earlobe, thinking: “The Infinity Coil is a storehouse of the souls. I suppose we might be able to communicate with the spirits within.”

  Tesla disagreed. “How could we even be sure the souls are still in there?”

  “We could talk to Dash about his experiences.”

  Ehrich stiffened. “Have you see him recently? He’s a wreck. We push him any further, he’ll snap. Promise me you will not involve him.”

  Tesla patted Ehrich on the shoulder. “We will leave him out of it.”

  “Could we release Ning Shu from the Infinity Coil?” Amina asked.

  “Her body’s under the river. Probably half eaten by the fish,” Ehrich said. “There’s no way to reunite her mind with her body.”

  “Perhaps a surrogate body,” Tesla suggested.

  “Any volunteers?” Amina asked.

  No one answered.

  Mr. Serenity stood up. “Right now, it’s merely a theory. Let’s adjourn for the evening and muse on the idea. Perhaps inspiration will strike us by morning.”

  “Good idea, my friend.” Tesla stood up.

  Amina growled. “We’d better not wait too long.”

  Mr. Serenity patted her on the shoulder. “Trust me, Amina. I know the urgency of all of this.”

  The group parted ways. Ehrich headed down the hallway to his quarters. He stopped as he neared the door. It was ajar. He peered inside the room. Dash rested on his side, asleep, except he still wore his shoes, which jutted out from under his blanket. Ehrich chewed his bottom lip. Had his brother been spying on them?

  An Old Friend

  The next morning, Ehrich, Amina, and two new recruits from Purgatory headed to the surface of New York to take a shift on the watch at the Hudson River tunnel. The journey through the pneumatic tubes tested the constitution of the volunteers. One nearly vomited when the sled pulled into the docking station in a shop cellar. Amina could see why the soldiers opted to leave this pair out of the training, but beggars couldn’t be choosers.

  Amina marched up the stairs to the street. She nodded at the gatekeeper, a traveller posing as an oyster merchant, whose cart was strategically placed in front of the cellar doors. Ehrich took up the rear, inhaling the smell of the fresh oysters as he emerged. He grinned at the heavyset gatekeeper and reached for a shell.

  She slapped his hand away and growled, “No money, no food. Get on your way.”

  Ehrich rubbed his hand and thought she was playing the part of a surly vendor far too well. He followed Amina an
d the recruits to the Hudson River. The emaciated pair looked as if they would be more comfortable in a hospital ward than on the streets of New York. The older one parted her long black hair from her forehead to reveal a third eye. Her younger companion—the mouse-like man who had vomited—stared bewilderedly at the scene around them. Ehrich thought they might cry at any minute.

  “The important thing to do is to blend in with everyone else,” Amina said. “Don’t draw any attention to yourself. Watch for Ba Tian’s soldiers. If you see any crimson travellers, Elba, you will return to Purgatory and tell us. Renata will follow the soldiers. Mark an arrow on the ground every few paces so we can track you. Understood?”

  The recruit with the third eye accepted the chalk from Amina. The nervous one, Elba, gaped at the fence and travellers, shuffling from one foot to the other.

  “We’ll stay with you for the first couple of hours until you settle in.”

  Ehrich patted Elba on the shoulder. “You’ll do fine.”

  “And if you see any weak spots in the fence security, report that as well,” Amina said. “Now, find a vantage point and plant yourselves.”

  They shuffled down the street.

  “Do you think they’ll be able to handle this?” Ehrich asked. “I think they’ll bolt at the sight of an alley cat.”

  “Let’s see if we can convince some of the travellers to help us.”

  “Actually, I was thinking about the break-in at Edison’s Orange County facilities. It’s a long shot, but I might be able to track Ole Lukoje if I can talk to the guards at the facilities.”

  “You think you can find him?”

  “I was a demon hunter, Amina. Tracking was my job. I’ll start at Edison’s Orange County facility and ask about the break-in.”

  “And now you’re a fugitive. I doubt anyone is going to volunteer any information to you.”

  He stroked his goatee. “Not me, but I’m sure they’ll be more than willing to talk to Mr. Edison’s director of dimensional acquisitions.”

  “A ruse? Risky, Ehrich. Too risky.”

  “It’s worth the risk if I can find him. What do you say?”

  “It’s a long shot at best.”

  “But it’s better than just waiting.” He nodded at the recruits, who leaned awkwardly against a wall and stared at the travellers nearby.

  Amina sighed. “Go on. I’m going to have to mind these two longer than I thought.”

  “Thanks, Amina. I’ll get back as soon as I learn anything.”

  “I wouldn’t complain if you found some lunch on your way back.”

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  .

  Ehrich jogged away from the Hudson River and headed to Edison’s laboratory. He found a coach headed toward the county and paid his fare. As the horse-drawn coach rattled across the roads, he stared at the passing terrain. The city streets were his new home, but when the coach rolled into the countryside, the pastures and forests reminded Ehrich of his real home. He longed to return with his brother, wondering how their parents had fared in their absence. Did they think the brothers had run away? Did they fear something evil had befallen them? And how would they react to the brothers’ return?

  Ehrich imagined his mother’s arms wrapping around him, and he could almost feel his father’s strong hand clap on his shoulder. In his fantasy, he saw Dash’s face light up and his kid brother return to his former self, instead of the hollow and sullen boy that he was now.

  Two hours later, he arrived at the laboratory. Hunters were posted at the gate. Ehrich checked his disguise and approached the sentries.

  “Morning,” he greeted them.

  The two females grunted at him, narrowing their gaze. “What’s your business here?”

  “Commissioner Edison sent me to check on the facility,” Ehrich said. “He wanted me to inventory the items inside.”

  The freckle-faced hunter cocked her head. “Word travels fast. It wasn’t our fault.”

  Ehrich played dumb. “Your fault for what?”

  “The break-in. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”

  “Of course. Yes. Why would you think Edison is blaming you?”

  “We heard rumours.”

  “Don’t worry. He hasn’t mentioned anything about you. He just wanted to know what was taken.”

  “That’s the weird thing. We don’t think anything was taken.”

  The taller girl interrupted. “Well, that’s not quite true. Karen’s eyes.”

  The freckle-faced girl looked down. “Yes. Right.”

  Ehrich probed. “The thief took her eyes?”

  The hunters nodded in unison. “I don’t know how she survived, but she’s no use to Edison anymore.”

  “Where is Karen now?” he asked.

  “I think they sent her to a convalescent home. Somewhere in the Bowery.”

  Ehrich stiffened. The home where Charlie was. His guilt began to gnaw at him again. “Thanks. I guess I’ll be on my way.”

  “You’re not going in?” the taller girl asked, narrowing her gaze.

  “You said it yourself. Nothing was taken. It came at a dear cost, but I’ll tell Mr. Edison you did your jobs.”

  The hunters relaxed and smiled. The freckle-faced one said, “Yes, tell him that. Ask if he can take us off this guard duty and give us patrol work.”

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  He waved as he left, thinking that Karen might give him the answers he needed. He headed to the Bowery and the home where Charlie was staying. Part of him dreaded going because of the guilt that gnawed at him for using his friend’s body as bait. Still, he needed answers.

  .

  It was mid-afternoon by the time he arrived in the Bowery. Dingy handwritten signs in windows replaced bright shop awnings along the cobblestone streets. The brick buildings showed wear and tear from the train pollution. Gone were the ladies and gentlemen in their Fifth Avenue finery; now middle-class workers in drab outfits drifted or loitered in the streets. Ehrich spotted pickpockets circling around an innocent victim. Prostitutes flashed their skirts at him. He turned away, embarrassed.

  Finally, he arrived at a street that no one frequented, not even the toughest thug. The only people who came here were the ones who had lost everything, including hope and fear. At the end of the road sat a nursing home. This was the convalescent home where Charlie lived and where Karen had been sent.

  Ehrich stepped onto the porch, debating whether to knock on the door. He pressed his hand against his fake goatee and moustache then knocked. The door opened. Inside the door stood a thin-framed vision of beauty: Bess. She looked exactly as she had when Ehrich first flirted with her when he’d posed as Harry Houdini in the shabby Bijou Theatre. He almost hugged her until he remembered the last time he’d seen her was when he’d tied her up to be left to the mercy of the hunters. She’d had some choice words for him when they parted—all of which made him blush.

  “Yes? Can I help you?” she asked.

  His original plan to pose as a hunter flew out of his mind. He stammered, “S-s-sorry to trouble you, miss, but I think I’m lost. I was told I could find the haberdashery on this street.”

  He feared she’d see through his disguise, but she merely furrowed her lovely brow. “A haberdashery? I can’t think of one in the neighbourhood.”

  “Oh. I suspect the young men who gave me the information might have bamboozled me.”

  Bess laughed. “They’re most likely waiting with clubs to bash your brains in so they can take your money.”

  “Oh, dear. I wanted to get some mending done. I’ll leave you and be on my way.” He started to back away from the porch.

  “What do you need fixed? Maybe I can help.”

  “You’re too kind, but I’ve taken up enough of your time, miss.”

  “Nonsense. I could use a
distraction. Show me what you need mended.”

  Ehrich tipped his hat with a grand flourish, misdirecting Bess so he could rip something from his jacket. He held up a black button: “It came loose when I woke and managed to unravel itself through the morning. I don’t want to trouble you … miss?”

  “Call me Bess. And you are?”

  “My name is Blackstone,” Ehrich answered.

  “Well, come in, before the thieves come for your money,” she said, stepping aside.

  He entered, catching a hint of her fresh-scented hair as he passed by. A mahogany table occupied the space by the hallway wall, right under a gilded mirror. In the sitting room, an Oriental rug covered the hardwood floor and a large armoire sat against the far wall. Indented wheel tracks marked the rug.

  “Do you live here by yourself?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “No, I work here.”

  “What do you do?”

  “I’m a pusher of chairs.”

  Ehrich cocked his head to one side, feigning ignorance.

  She laughed. “I look after the patients who live here.”

  “Patients?”

  She noted the wall of black-and-white photos. All of them featured people in wheelchairs. Some stared directly at the camera with fierce defiance. Others gaped vacantly.

  “They have no families to look after them. Well, no families that will take responsibility, anyway. The state sent them here to live out what years they have left.”

  “And you tend to them all?” Ehrich asked.

  “Well, me and Mrs. Sherman. She runs the home. Are you going to take that off?” she asked.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Did you think I would sew your button on while you were still wearing the jacket?”

  “Oh, right,” Ehrich said. He began to take off his jacket. “Is this your main occupation? Looking after the patients?”

  “No. In my spare time, I mend jackets for strangers.”

  He chuckled. “Thank you. I appreciate this. How many patients do you have?”

  “Right now, we’re tending to eight. No, seven.”

  “Oh?”

  “The new one, well, she didn’t make it. Lost her eyes and her spirit to go on.”