“Missiles won’t do it,” I said to the car. “What can I do?”
“I don’t know,” said the car. “What can you bring to the party?”
“I have a Colt Repeater!”
“That’ll do nicely,” said the car.
A sliding panel opened in the roof above me, while the front seat sank down into the floor. I stood up, and the upper half of my body passed easily through the space provided. I drew my Colt Repeater from its shoulder holster, called for standard steel ammo, and let the gun do the rest.
I braced myself as the car plunged back and forth, and screwed up my eyes at the wind that battered my face. I felt cold and alone and very vulnerable. No torc, no armour, no protection. If a bullet hit me, I would die. Simple as that. I wanted to sit down again. Let Molly and the car do all the hard work. But I couldn’t just sit there in safety while innocent people were being killed. Because of me. So I turned the Colt Repeater on the nearest flying reptile, and opened fire.
The first bullet hit the rider of the Pteranodon coming straight at me. Slammed right through her left eye. Her head snapped back and blood and brains spilled out through the exit wound, flying off into the slipstream. The pink and grey streamers seemed to just fly away forever. Until the dead warrior woman fell off the Pteranodon, and tumbled bonelessly through the air. The Pteranodon screamed angrily, and just kept coming; so I shot that through the left eye too. The skull was probably bony enough to deflect a bullet. (I did the general aiming; the gun took care of the rest.) The Pteranodon plunged from the sky like a dead plane, and smashed through the roof of a boulangerie.
Sometimes the bullets hit hard enough to punch a Pan’s Panzerperson backwards out of her saddle. Sometimes I couldn’t get a clear shot at a Pteranodon’s eye, and then I’d blow holes in their leathery wings until they couldn’t stay aloft, and they fell scrabbling from the sky to slam into the ground, and spread their guts across the road. Sometimes, if I killed the rider the Pteranodon would just flap away, and I’d let them go. It wasn’t their idea to be here.
The cold rushing air beat me in the face, as I steadied my right wrist with my left hand. The Colt’s aiming system could do only so much. I kept firing, and women and reptiles kept dying. Molly was still working the missile controls, so that the sky above was full of flames and dark clouds, and bloody bits and pieces falling through the air. Bullets still came pounding in from every direction, ricocheting from the sides of the car and sparking from the roof, some increasingly close to me.
I’d never felt so scared. There had been times before when I’d been separated from my torc for a time, but I’d never had to go into battle without my armour’s protection. I flinched every time a bullet flew away from the roof. Sometimes I cried out, involuntarily. My stomach ached from where the muscles had been clenched for so long. It was hard to get my breath. I could have sat down. Said I’d done enough. But I couldn’t, as long as there were still Nazi killers in the air and people dying in the streets. And because if I did sit down, I knew I’d never get my nerve back.
I needed to prove to myself that torc or no torc, armour or no armour, I was still me. With a Drood’s training and a Drood’s duty. I may not always have believed in my family, but I have always believed in what they were supposed to stand for.
That’s usually been the trouble between us.
I switched from steel ammo to incendiaries, summoning them into the Colt from wherever the hell it stores the damn stuff, and the gun made sure I never missed. I killed the Nazi killers, one by one, and dead Pteranodons fell as blazing carcasses from an increasingly empty sky. Falling bodies slammed into burning roofs, and smashed through storefronts, while others hit the ground hard and did not move again. Until finally there was only one Pan’s Panzerperson left, standing up in her silver stirrups as she raked the Scarlet Lady with machine gun fire, screaming obscenities that were mostly lost in the rushing air.
She sent her Pteranodon circling round the car in a tight curve, so that I had to keep turning in my enclosed space to track her. And then she brought the flying reptile all the way round, and urged it hurtling down. The Pteranodon flew straight at the car, just a few yards above the ground. Collision course.
“I’ve run out of rockets!” Molly shrieked at me. “There’s nothing more I can do!”
“And the reptile’s still too far off the ground for my front-mounted cannon to do any good!” said the car.
“Hold yourself steady,” I said.
I leaned forward, across the car roof. The Pan’s Panzerperson was speeding towards me, hunched over her Pteranodon. She saw me aim my gun at her and laughed raucously. She and her mount flew right at me, as she fired her machine gun in short steady bursts. Bullets sprayed all around me, ricocheting harmlessly from the car’s roof. Reptile and rider drew closer and closer, while I waited for a clear shot, and then I aimed the Colt Repeater as carefully as I could, and shot the Nazi warrior woman right between the eyes. Her head snapped back, her hands flying away from the mounted machine gun. She fell sideways, out of her silver saddle, but one foot remained caught in the silver stirrup. The Pteranodon flew on, its dead rider dangling beneath it. I couldn’t get a clear shot at either of the Pteranodon’s eyes as it headed straight for us, screaming with rage.
“Nothing more I can do,” I said. “Coming back in, car.”
The front seat reappeared below me. I sank back into it, and the roof panel closed over my head as I sat down. I slipped the Colt Repeater back into its shoulder holster. I was shaking, shuddering, from reaction. Looking through the windscreen, I could see the Pteranodon flying straight at us, growing bigger and bigger. Its great wings flapped viciously as it built up more and more speed. I fastened my seat belt again, and put my hands on the steering wheel.
“Give me control, Scarlet Lady,” I said.
“Are you sure about this?” said the car. “If you’re thinking of dodging that thing, my reflexes are a lot better than yours.”
“No,” I said. “I don’t think dodging would work.”
“And I really don’t think you should assume that you or I would survive a head-on collision with several flying tons of enraged flying dinosaur!” said the car.
“Just give me control! I’ve got an idea!”
“Oh, well, that’s different,” said the car.
The steering wheel came alive under my hands. I kept us on course, straight towards the Pteranodon.
“This better be a really good idea,” said Molly.
In the back seat, Frankie was singing “Abide With Me.” The car joined in.
I waited till the very last moment, until the Pteranodon was committed and plunging down out of the sky, straight at us. And then, I slammed on the brakes. The car screamed to a very sudden halt, black smoke belching out from the wheel arches. Molly and I were thrown forward against our seat belts. (No airbags. Not that kind of car.) But we slammed to a halt much faster than any modern car could have managed. And the Pteranodon slammed head first into the road, exactly where we would have been if I hadn’t hit the brakes. The impact broke the reptile’s neck, and it tumbled over and over across the ground before sliding to a halt right in front of us.
Dead as a dodo.
I put the car in gear and rode over the reptile, taking my time, just to be sure. I drove on, and then gave control back to the Scarlet Lady. And only then did my hands start shaking again. Molly leaned over and put an arm across my shoulders, hugged me, and kissed me on the cheek.
“My hero,” she said.
The missile control disappeared, as the dashboard revolved back into place again. The car radio started playing “Give Peace a Chance,” while the car hummed along. Frankie slowly reappeared in the back seat, looking very pale as he checked himself for bullet holes. The car moved steadily along at a sane and reasonable pace, and bit by bit the general traffic reappeared, to accompany us. Driving calmly and easily, as though it had never been away. The whole city seemed entirely calm and peaceful again, as t
hough there was no fire and black smoke rising up in the car’s rearview mirror.
“Is there a bar anywhere in this vehicle?” said Molly.
A bar immediately appeared in the dashboard before her, and Molly opened it up and poured herself a very generous brandy. She offered one to me, but I shook my head, tight-lipped. I felt like I needed to stay sharp, in control. I held both my hands together in my lap, and they gradually stopped shaking. I’d risked my life before, in the field. Just never so . . . nakedly. Frankie looked pleadingly at Molly, and she passed him back a brandy. He downed it greedily, and made loud grateful noises.
“They did warn me about you two,” he said, after a while. “But I didn’t believe them. . . .”
“How are they going to remove all those dead reptiles?” said Molly.
“Fork-lift trucks, I expect,” said Frankie.
“I still want to know who sent those Pan’s Panzerpeople after us,” I said. “I want a name. You must suspect someone, Frankie.”
“This is Casino Infernale,” Frankie said patiently. “It could be any number of people. Experienced players weeding out the weaker opponents is not only expected, it’s actively encouraged. This was a bit over the top, admittedly.”
“Can we expect more of this?” said Molly.
“Of course,” said Frankie. “Nothing so obvious, or straight forward, once we’re safely inside the Casino itself, but . . .”
“Then in future,” said Molly, “I think we should get our retaliation in first.”
“You’re going to fit right in,” said Frankie. “You stand up to them, girl. I’ll be right behind you. Hiding.”
“This all happened a bit too soon for my liking,” I said. “This was all arranged; waiting for us. But who knew exactly where and when we’d be arriving, and what car we’d be using?”
“Good questions,” said Frankie. “I’d try to find out, if I was you.”
“Have you got an ejector seat?” I asked the car.
CHAPTER FOUR
Dinner Theatre
For a supposedly secret location, Casino Infernale didn’t believe in hiding its light behind any kind of bushel. We could see the Casino long before we got anywhere near it. The massive building rose up into a cloudless blue sky like a mad cathedral monstrosity on the very edge of the city. Like a mountain manufactured in steel and glass, shining brighter than the sun. The Scarlet Lady tinted her windscreen till the car’s interior was gloomy as a tomb and the light still blasted through. Less and less traffic accompanied us as we approached our destination, until finally we were the only vehicle left heading down the single narrow road to Casino Infernale. The shops were all closed, and even boarded up, and finally disappeared completely, until there was nothing left to look at but the massive structure filling the horizon before us. I was concerned the lack of traffic might indicate another attack, but Frankie quickly put me right.
“This whole end of town is strictly off-limits to everyone but expected guests. The telepaths in the cellar see to that. No one comes here by accident; you only get this close if your name is on the list. No tourists, no gate-crashers, no one who isn’t . . . the right sort.”
“I have never been the right sort in my entire life,” Molly said immediately. “And proud of it!”
“We have so much in common,” I said. “I have to say, I don’t see any obvious security measures in place. . . .”
“You wouldn’t,” said Frankie. “Until it was far too late.”
I looked across at Molly. “Without my torc, I don’t have the Sight any more. Elves could be fighting a war with alien Greys up and down this street, and I wouldn’t know anything about it. Are you Seeing anything?”
“No,” said Molly, frowning. “And since I very definitely should be Seeing something, I can only assume somebody is interfering with my Sight. And there’s not many who can do that.”
“The Shadow Bank doesn’t just depend on telepaths to keep Casino Infernale’s secrets under wrap,” said Frankie. “They also spend big money on major sorcerers, future science tech, and things fresh out of laboratories or straight from the testing bench. If you can name it, they’ve almost certainly got it on the payroll here somewhere. Hopefully on a strong leash. Major league gamblers only come to Casino Infernale because they know they’ll be safe and protected from outside threats. Of course, no one protects the gamblers from each other. You’re all fair game, to each other. That’s part of the fun.”
“Have you ever been inside Casino Infernale yourself?” said Molly.
“Well, no,” said Frankie. “Not as such.”
“Then just how dependable is all this information you’ve been feeding us?” said Molly.
“Want me to electrocute the back seat?” said the car, cheerfully. “That should get some straight answers out of him.”
“You can do that?” I said.
“Wouldn’t take me long to rig something up,” said the car.
“I talked to the staff!” Frankie said quickly. “The waiters and the maids and the cleaning staff! All the little people, that the Big Names don’t even notice. You’d be amazed what Major Players will say to each other, right in front of the hotel staff. Who are all so badly paid they’re always ready to spill the beans in return for cold cash and a warm smile. Revenge and retribution have always been a big part of the class war. If the Casino paid their staff a decent wage, they wouldn’t talk, but that would mean Casino management admitting their hotel employees were people of real value. Casino Infernale only cares about the games and the gamblers. Idiots. Penny wise, pound foolish, and a boon to spies like us.”
I nodded. “That’s why there aren’t any staff at Drood Hall. We do everything ourselves, pretend it’s character-building, and make a virtue out of necessity. They made me clean the brass when I was small, over and over again. You wouldn’t believe just how many brass objects accumulate in a Hall as old as ours. I can get horrible flashbacks, just from the smell of Duraglit. Do I really need to tell you that I don’t own a single brass object?”
“Go on, dear, let it all out,” said Molly. “Vent. . . .”
* * *
As we finally approached the front entrance of Casino Infernale, the massive structure revealed more and more of itself. A huge futuristic building made of steel and glass, gold and diamond, rising hundreds of stories up into the sky. Big enough to hold a dozen standard hotels, and a whole army of security people to protect it. The building’s aesthetics were . . . odd. The exterior was made up of long curves and circling lines, endlessly interacting, with great waves of glass rising and falling across the front. I couldn’t help but be reminded of the Martian Tombs—all straight lines and no curves. It did make me wonder whether the Casino building was . . . from around here.
“It looks like some alien starship that’s crash-landed on the outskirts of Nantes,” said Molly.
“Funny you should say that,” said Frankie, leaning forward across the back seat. “The whole thing is supposed to be built around stolen alien tech, though no one’s willing to talk about just where the Casino might have acquired such materials. The whole structure teleports from one location to another, with a blast of such power that space at the other end just sort of shuffles around to make room for the new arrival. Well, wouldn’t you? That Casino is big enough to intimidate Moby Dick’s big brother.”
I pushed Frankie back into the rear seat, and leaned across to talk quietly with Molly. “I can’t help being reminded of Alpha Red Alpha. . . . The Armourer was pretty damned sure we had the only teleport machine of its kind anywhere in the world. I think we owe it to ourselves to take a really close look at whatever it is the Casino uses to jump itself around. And, if need be, shut it down with extreme prejudice and really bad language. I am not happy with the idea that there might be anything in this world capable of sending Drood Hall on its travels again.”
“I thought the Armourer said that he’d taken measures to ensure that couldn’t happen,” said Molly.
“Yes, well,” I said. “The Armourer says lots of things. . . .”
“What are you two talking about?” said Frankie, cautiously, from the very back of the rear seat. “Aren’t we all for one, one for all, and all that?”
“You wish,” I said.
“That is a very big building,” said Molly.
“Size isn’t everything,” I said.
“You wish,” said Molly. And then she elbowed me in the ribs, laughing at the look on my face. “I meant the building, sweetie! Look at it! You could swing Drood Hall around like a cat inside that thing!”
It was big, and seeming bigger all the time, as the Scarlet Lady headed straight for it like a bullet from a gun. The hotel rose up and up before us, an overpowering, overbearing presence that seemed to look right through me and know everything I didn’t want it to know. Which was probably the effect the designers had in mind. The car finally slammed on the brakes, spun the wheel, and parallel parked with a vengeance, bringing us to a juddering halt square in front of the main entrance door. All the other vehicles parked in the vicinity just coincidentally discovered a need to move a little farther away, to give the Scarlet Lady plenty of room. For safety’s sake. Pride, status, and authority just vanished in the face of the Scarlet Lady’s brutal intransigence.
I undid my safety belt with surprisingly steady hands, and clambered out of the front seat. I would have liked to say a great many things, but I didn’t. Never show weakness in front of an ally. I looked up the front of the building, and immediately wished I hadn’t. I had to crane my head right back, and still couldn’t make out the top floors. I felt a kind of reverse vertigo, as though I couldn’t be sure of my grip on the ground, and might go sailing up into the sky at any moment. I looked down at my feet, and then squeezed my eyes shut for a moment. The vulnerabilities of being without a torc struck me at the strangest moments. Molly moved in close beside me. She didn’t say anything, but her hand slipped into mine as she pressed up against me.
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