I got to the edge and stopped long enough to reach up with my wrench. I stuck it over the cord and grabbed the loose end with my free hand. I crouched and, with a prayer, jumped off the roof.
I slid down the cord, my legs stretched out in front of me and pressed together, my hands cramping as I squeezed the wrench tight. It wasn’t the smoothest journey, as I kept bumping over joints and rough spots, and my eyes were shut with fear, but I held on.
My feet hit the lamppost first. I opened my eyes and looked up. Neil and Strom were flying off into the distance, still arguing. I glanced down to the street. and saw that several people had gathered below, staring up at me. “Are you all right?” one gentleman shouted.
I wrapped my legs around the lamppost. I let go of the wrench with one hand and grabbed the post. “I’ll be fine,” I said to the people below, “but I’m going to need you to stand back.” They moved away from the lamppost, and I dropped my wrench so that I’d have both hands free. As the wrench clanged to the ground, I started to climb down.
A cab pulled up near the lamppost as I reached the street. Sophie was staring out the window, up into the morning sky. “Valcyr?” she said softly. “My heavens.”
I picked up my wrench and ran for the cab. “Sophie!” I shouted. “We need to get to the train station! Now!”
“Tabitha?” Sophie blinked as I climbed in. “What in the world?”
“Listen to me!” I said, trying not to panic. “Strom! He murdered Whitlock and Jenkinson! He’s going to sabotage the Velessan Express! And Neil’s working with him!”
Sophie stared at me. “Tabitha?”
“I’m not joking! Strom was going to kill me! No witnesses, he said!”
“No witnesses—oh Gods!” Sophie’s eyes widened. “The lamp! It wasn’t an accident! Strom was out to kill me! He must be trying to cover up the rail line construction deaths!”
“We have to get on the train,” I said, trying not to panic. “I can use my sensing. Maybe I can find out if something’s wrong and try to fix it.”
Sophie reached into her handbag. “Well…” She pulled out two ornate tickets printed in gold leaf. “I was hoping this would have been a more pleasant surprise.”
I stared at the tickets to the debut trip of the Velessan Express. “That explains your outfit,” I said slowly.
Even though it was an early hour, the streets near the new Copper Cove train station were packed. People had come from miles around to attend the ceremony and see the Velessan Express for the first time. It was so crowded with locals, tourists and vehicles that our cab took over an hour to make a trip that would normally have taken ten minutes. I should have been agitated about this, considering why we were headed to the station, but in truth I was grateful as I was able to take a brief nap along the way.
My head might have rested on Sophie’s shoulder as I slept. She was kind enough not to complain.
The station had been quite the sight during its construction, but with the final coats of paint applied and the scaffolding taken down, it was breathtaking. The copper highlights gleamed in the great dome, and the archways over the entrance were perfectly curved. “Gorgeous,” I said softly as I climbed out of the cab.
“It is quite grand,” Sophie said as I helped her down.
“Someone from the Courant will be taking photographs?”
“Several someones.”
I grimaced. “I’m sure they’ll all get my bad side. Which way?”
“There.” Sophie pointed towards two queues that had been set up. “One should be for those with tickets, and the other is for people who want to get up close to view the train.”
“For a price, of course,” I said as we started to squeeze our way through the crowd outside the station’s entrance. Sophie’s gaze was fixed on the queues, but I was watching the people who surrounded us. There were those who, like us, had secured tickets for the train and were headed towards the queue. There were the curious, individuals and families and groups of friends. There were food sellers and other merchants trying to make a crown or two out of the celebration. And there was one pickpocket, who snuck away from us when I gave him a dirty look and a muttered curse.
The two queues were neatly organized, with people lined up between the stanchions and the velvet ropes. A large troll in a blue railroad constable’s uniform and an absurdly tall hat stood at the entrance to the queues, checking tickets and guiding people into the proper queue. “Good morning,” she said politely to us as we approached. “Tickets, please?”
“One moment.” Sophie smiled as she dug into her handbag. She pulled out the tickets and handed them to the troll, who punched them and gestured to the queue on her right.
We thanked her and got in the queue. In a few minutes, we were at the station’s entrance, where two dwarven constables were handling security. One glanced at my toolbelt, then up at me. “With the guilds?” he asked. “Where’s your robe?”
“Well…” Sophie said as she handed the other dwarf the tickets.
“It’s a costume,” I said quickly. “I wanted to pay tribute to everyone along the rail line who worked so hard to make this a success.”
The dwarf shrugged. “At least you don’t have to wear a big blue hat. Cute khala, by the way.”
I thanked him as the other dwarf punched the tickets again. Sophie took them back, and we stepped through the turnstiles. I gasped with delight.
The station was as wondrously designed inside as it was outside. The designers had taken inspiration from the Ticking Tower, and the walls were covered in murals depicting the history of Copper Cove, all of which were well lit by the windows high up in the dome. To one side of the large waiting room were shops, offices and the ticket counter, and to the other was the wide platform. Hanging from the arched entrance there was another touch of inspiration, a four-sided clock.
“Sophie?” I whispered as we walked across the waiting room towards the queue to board the Velessan Express.
“Yes?” She glanced at me.
I took her hand in mine. “No matter what the reason, I’m grateful to be here with you.” I smiled. “Thank you.” Sophie smiled back and drew nearer to me. I closed my eyes, ready for the kiss.
“Good morning!”
I grumbled softly as I pulled back and opened my eyes. The ear-splitting greeting had come from a well-dressed gentleman standing at a podium. He was speaking into a Fellowship designed megaphone that amplified his voice, but he was still shouting. Half the crowd winced and covered their ears. Near him, a brass band started to tune up in a desultory manner.
The speaker lowered his megaphone, tapped it, and started again at a lower volume. “We welcome to you to the opening of the Copper Cove railroad station, and the premiere trip of our flagship train, the Velessan Express!” The crowd politely applauded.
“Who would this be?” I asked Sophie.
“Flagstaff,” she said. “From the Transport Ministry. He works under Strom.”
“I assume they needed to find someone in a hurry,” I muttered as I glanced back at him. He was introducing the various officials and nobles who were in attendance. However, almost all of them were in the queue, and none of them were about to step out of it to join in the speeches. They settled for waving or tipping their hats to the crowd, who were likely grateful for not having to sit through further oration.
The queue led us to one last constable, a woman with gray hair poking out from under her hat, at the entrance to the platform. “You’re with the Courant, aren’t you?” she said to Sophie.
“Guilty as charged.” Sophie smiled as she handed the constable the tickets.
“And you must be as excited about this as I am!”
“I think my friend is more excited.” Sophie nodded at me.
“Oh, I am!” I smiled. “This is all so amazing!”
“And you’re dressed for it!” The constable chuckled. “Be sure to hold on to your ticket. You won’t be allowed to board the Express without it.”
“Thank you!” I said as I headed for the platform. I saw there was another set of velvet ropes. The ticket holders, including myself and Sophie, were on one side, and those who had paid to watch the Express start its first trip waited on the other.
Our side of the platform was quite crowded. “We must be among the last ones to get here,” I said to Sophie.
“Well, we might not have been if someone hadn’t taken forever to wake up when we got to the station,” Sophie said teasingly.
I grinned. “Stronger tea would have—”
My rejoinder was cut off by the brass band, which had moved to the entrance to the platform and were giving their instruments what for. “It’s time for the moment we’ve all been waiting for!” Flagstaff said, shouting through his megaphone over the musical din. “Introducing...the Velessan Express!”
Every head turned towards the end of the platform. I gasped with joy.
The train was beautiful. The engine was a mix of steel and wood, hiding a giant tank of dwimm-infused water. The steam that the water generated as it powered the engine was blowing out in a thick plume through a rather impressive chimney, trailing behind the train and leaving a faint metallic tang in the air. Behind it were all the cars, passenger and luxury coaches, dining and mail cars and the caboose, all brightly painted.
The engine was being run in reverse, so that it could leave the station heading in the proper direction. It slowly backed in, to the cheers of the crowd. As it stopped, the engineer sounded the whistle, which was loud enough to drown out both the onlookers and the brass band.
Everyone on the platform was trying to control their excitement as the doors swung open. “What do we do?” Sophie whispered to me.
“I need to get close enough to the train to touch it,” I whispered back. “I’ll see what I can sense.”
“All right.” Sophie took my arm and led me towards the doors of the nearest passenger car. I saw some of the other passengers reach out and touch the wood panels of the car as they waited to board. I stopped and laid my fingertips on the metal trim, closing my eyes.
I could sense the footsteps of the people boarding the train, and a faint rhythmic pulse underneath those, but nothing else. “It seems safe,” I said softly as I pulled my hand back.
“Nothing?” Sophie raised an eyebrow.
“Not on this car. There could be something on another car. Maybe Strom planted something when he inspected it on Thursday.”
“Tabitha?” Sophie said. “Do you think…” Her voice trailed off as she looked past my shoulder.
“Ah, Sophronia!” I turned and saw Alcroft walking up to us. “Do you have your tickets?”
“Of course.” Sophie smiled as she took them from her handbag.
“Good.” Alcroft plucked one from her hand.
Sophie gasped. “Alcroft?”
The editor waved his hand, and an elf I had the misfortune to recognize ducked under the velvet rope that separated the passengers from the spectators. “Jones had promised Lady Greenbrae a ticket,” Alcroft said. “Sorry, Miles.” He took Lady Greenbrae’s arm and placed his free hand on Sophie’s back, pushing her away. As he did, the elf smiled triumphantly at me.
“Wait!” I shouted. “Wait! Sophie!” I tried to move towards them, but a wave of passengers swept between us.
Sophie glanced back over her shoulder. “Check the engine,” she mouthed. I nodded as she boarded the Express with Alcroft and Greenbrae.
I lowered my head as the passengers continued to board. I barely noticed when the constable with the gray hair walked up to me. “I saw what happened,” she said. “I’m sorry.”
“And I’d been so looking forward to this, too,” I said with a sigh.
“I will have to ask you to leave in a moment. This is supposed to be for ticket holders only.”
“Of course—” I stopped for a second as an idea hit. “Could I just get a look at the engine? Please?”
“I don’t see why not.” The constable turned and walked off. “When you’re finished, you can find a spot behind the rope to watch.” She was quickly swallowed up in the crowd.
I hurried over to the engine. It was almost a frightening sight, still radiating a faint heat from its trip into the station, with that slight metallic smell. I had never tried to sense anything even close to its size. I swallowed hard and hoped I wouldn’t burn myself as I closed my eyes and laid my hand on the engine.
I could sense the power there, building, only held in check by the brake, waiting to be unleashed with a thunderous rumble. I let my sensing spread through the engine, much as the train seemed to be spreading into me. It was starting to overwhelm me, leave me dazed, but I gritted my teeth and pushed it back as I pulled my hand away. I could tell that the engine was in perfect shape, and there was no sign of sabotage.
“You there!” My eyes snapped open, and I saw a man in Double-C robes walking up to me. “What’s going on?”
I was grateful that he seemed to be the only guilder in all of Copper Cove who had no idea about who I was. “Just catching my breath,” I said quickly. “I’ll be—”
“Must have gotten your robe dirty, eh?”
I was quiet for a second, but my brain realized that he thought I worked for or with the railroad and ran with it. “Grease stains. I couldn’t look that untidy on a day like this.”
“Smart.” He pointed down the tracks that led away from the platform, that would be carrying the Velessan Express soon. “There should be a crew doing last-minute maintenance. Go join them, see if they need help.”
“Right.” I headed for the far end of the platform.
“And be careful of the tracks!” he shouted.
I stopped. “Why?”
“You forgot already?” He shook his head. “They’ve been infused with dwimm. There are generators along the way for an emergency power supply. Stay in contact with them for too long and it’ll hurt.”
“Thank you,” I said politely. I ignored his mutterings as I climbed down the ladder and out towards the railyard, trying to clear my head.
I walked alongside the rails, my boots crunching in the freshly-laid gravel. I could see the train tracks heading out past the shore and into the horizon, as far as the eye could see.
My mind was whirling, beyond the disappointment of getting my chance to ride the train taken from me. If the train hadn’t been sabotaged, then what was Strom’s plan? Was he going to attack it after it had left the station? Did he have a co-conspirator on board? Could Sophie convince someone that the passengers and crew might be in danger?
The thought crossed my mind that Strom might have changed his. If there was someone who knew what he had planned, he might have decided to wait for another time. Or maybe Neil would talk some sense into him. What the Devil had happened to him, to get him mixed up in all this?
As I reflected on Neil, my foot came down on a spot in the gravel that seemed to be shallow. I stumbled slightly, catching my balance as I took a step back.
A tentacle burst out of the gravel where I had stumbled. It was brass and multi-jointed, with a long steel tip. I gasped as the pebbles slid aside.
The bulbous head burst to the surface, smooth and shiny. It dug its tentacles into the gravel, lifting itself out as the pebbles tumbled into the hole. It turned its bulging eyes, glowing with dwimm, to face me.
I heard familiar laughter. Cogs and gears! I thought as I backed away from the automaton.
“Do you like my new creation, renegade?” Claudette Elgin cackled as she stepped out of the shadows, holding a panel with many switches, knobs and buttons. “I call it my Coptopus!”
I glanced back and forth between Elgin and her new toy. “This isn’t the time—” I tried to say.
“I knew you’d come! This was too much for you to resist!” Elgin brandished the panel as if she’d just won some sort of prize. “I have you now, Miles!”
“No!” I shouted. “Wait! There’s—”
“You won’t give up quietly? Perfect!”
Elgin punched a button on the panel. “It’ll be a better test this way!”
I saw the treaded wheels on the underbody of the Coptopus as it crawled towards me. It aimed a tentacle at my torso. I started to edge away from it, and from the tracks.
The tip of the tentacle shot off with a puff of steam. I stepped aside and let it fly past me. It struck the rail, spun around, and cracked open. Gas spewed out, but it was carried away by the wind. I suspected that it would have knocked me out had I inhaled it.
“Stand still!” Elgin barked. “You’re ruining the test!”
“Will you stop and listen to me for once!” I yelled.
Elgin glanced up at me. She was silent for a second. “Well…”
She tapped her panel. The tips of two more tentacles flew off, trailing cords behind them that dropped to the ground on either side of me. “No,” she said with a somewhat sadistic grin.
The tentacle tips swung about behind me. Their cords snapped towards my legs. I tried to jump, but I was too late. The cords tangled around my ankles, and I dropped back to the ground with a loud thud.
The cords started to retract, pulling me towards the Coptopus. It began to glow, and I had a feeling that it was going to deliver some sort of shock to me if I came into contact with it. I grabbed the nearest rail to try to keep from being pulled too close.
My sensing kicked in. I gasped.
When I had sensed the lamp that had exploded outside of Strom’s office, my hand had tingled in an unsettling manner. Now, it was tingling the same way, but much stronger, almost as if tiny needles were coursing through my bloodstream. My hair was standing on end. It was so overpowering that I couldn’t keep my grip on the rail.
Oh no, I thought as the Coptopus pulled me closer. It’s the rails. One of the generators has been rigged to explode. The train will crash into the sea. Everyone on board will die. Sophie...
“Too much for you, Miles?” Elgin laughed as she tapped the panel. A third tentacle tip shot off, and its trailing cord wrapped around my torso, pinning my left arm in place.
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