by C A Ardron
Jackal walked on. He would have to break up that partnership. He couldn't have them working together against him. He'd have to take out the weaker of the two, and it would have to be done by stealth and intrigue, not brute force.
At the end of the sewer it opened up into a circular chamber and Jackal sighed with relief. The large stone room was lit by a bright wall of shimmering energy. Jackal took a second to admire it, and the gallon upon gallon of water held at bay behind it.
‘Just another escape route,’ he murmured. As general, it was his duty and privilege to know where every one of Trine's escape routes where. That information had certainly come in handy now, though he doubted Trine would ever use this unless the Dakkonin cut off all his other options. The sclithe could easily flatten himself out to fit down the sewer, but it would be time consuming.
He looked around carefully at the grey, cracked walls of the chamber. His eyes narrowed in the darkness as he located the camouflaged metal panel on the wall.
***
Falcon was coldly furious. Did Tiger take her job seriously at all? She flapped her wings and flew a little higher, not wanting Hawk to see her angry expression. Was Tiger thinking about anything beyond her petty grievances with the Dakkonin? Jay was in grave danger, quite possibly already receiving his first training as a potential and all that went with it. This wasn't funny and it wasn't a game. If they didn't get to Jay in time, he might not even want to be rescued.
She noticed Hawk was struggling to keep up and slowed a little. Falcon wasn't sure what kind of hawk his medallion was but even with his great speed, he was hard-pressed to match her. It came as no surprise to her. During the Choosing Dove hadn't bothered to use the silver medallion's full name, but now Falcon was linked to it, she knew it was the peregrine.
She felt a moment of pride that she was compatible with the fastest bird of prey in the world, but suppressed it soon afterwards. Falcon knew she shouldn't get too attached to it, she needed to give it back soon.
The emotions of the falcon welled up suddenly, overwhelming her with a deep sense of sadness.
I'm sorry, she thought, trying to translate the words into an emotion the bird could understand. I can't stay.
Hawk caught up, appearing at her side and waved to get her attention. She looked over at him as he pointed down at a diagonal angle. The last of the sun's azure light had disappeared, and it was hard for her to make out much below, but she saw immediately what had caught his attention.
There was a harsh, sooty glow reaching up towards the sky in one huge spurt of flame. No communication needed, they descended, Falcon's dive instantly out-distancing Hawk.
She landed lightly on a grassy bank, the ruddy glow of the bonfire revealing a narrow soil path on one side and the wide river Sceir on the other. This was on the edge of West Sector, Falcon thought, glancing behind her. The Astall highway was nearby, she could hear the traffic, but it was further down the bank and out of sight.
Hawk landed next to her and together they moved nearer to the unattended fire.
‘There's no one here,’ Hawk commented. ‘We'd better put this fire out.’ He started to search around for loose dirt to throw at it.
‘Allow me,’ Falcon told him.
‘Huh?’
Falcon didn't reply but raised both her hands, stretching them out towards the fire. She concentrated for a moment, forming the desired shape in her mind, then released the Power within her.
Hawk jumped back as a thick pyramid of ice materialised on top of the bonfire. The weight of it alone extinguished the fire without the intense cold needing to play its part.
In the sudden darkness, Hawk made a strangled sound. ‘Well. You're just full of surprises, aren't you?’
Falcon strode over to the dim shape of her handiwork. She made a sharp cutting motion with one hand and the pyramid sheared into several pieces. She kicked the largest of them into the river and turned back to Hawk.
‘We should contact the others. This is the perfect place for tunnel entrances, but our Avian sight will be useless in the dark.’
Hawk nodded his agreement and brought out his radio. He was about to make contact when they both heard an odd humming. They both turned just in time to see a dull red light shooting towards them.
Falcon took a step back as she was hit by the laser. She inhaled sharply, bracing herself for the pain but was surprised when there was nothing. She looked around and saw Hawk rubbing his chest where the laser had hit him.
‘What was that?’ He asked.
‘I've got no idea. We should-’ Falcon's wary desire to look for enemies was cut off and she gasped, her body becoming weak.
A numbness started to spread through her arms and legs and she fell onto her back. She fought the panic rising within her. ‘Hawk?’
‘I can't move,’ his frightened voice was muffled.
Falcon was still able to move her neck and she looked at him. He was laid next to her but he'd fallen face down, all she could really see from her vantage point was his boots.
As Falcon tried to work out what had happened and what they were supposed to do now, she heard footsteps. They were softend by the grass so she couldn't tell from the sound what manner of person was approaching. It could've been a civilian out walking his dog or much more likely, a medallion warrior with hostile intentions.
She struggled to move again, but her limbs were completely immobile. Falcon gritted her teeth. She'd find it hard to defend herself with the Power without moving her arms.
In the darkness, she saw a figure. Falcon couldn't make out much but the shape of the stranger's head instantly identified them a someone wearing activated armour.
She struggled helplessly as he bent down and removed her radio and then Hawk's. ‘Who are you?’ she asked. ‘What do you want?’
The figure didn't reply and she heard the sound of the radios, one by one, being switched off.
Falcon breathed in sharply. The others wouldn't be able to track their positions now. Her face set grimly. Whoever this warrior was, they were good. An assassin perhaps? Which could only mean a Sarpien. She reached out with her mind gently, being careful not to use too much in case the warrior could use the Power as well. She felt his aura but didn't recognise it for anyone she'd met before.
The warrior came into view again and Hawk strained his neck to look up. Falcon became sure it was a man.
The warrior held their radios in one hand and then with a half-shrug, tossed them aside. Falcon tried to keep her breathing steady, wondering if there was anything she could do.
‘Who are you?’ Hawk growled.
The stranger looked down at him. ‘Stingray.’
‘What?’ Hawk asked, sounding confused.
Falcon couldn't believe it. ‘You’re Darphon?’ Only the Darphon Order used aquatic medallions.
Stingray chuckled. ‘I expected more from two birds of prey.’ He rested on his haunches beside Falcon. ‘Especially a silver,’ he took hold of a strand of her silver hair.
She stared daggers at him, but there was nothing she could do.
‘What have you done to us?’ Hawk asked into the grass.
Stingray stood and backed a step so they could both see him. He held up a small pistol in the darkness. ‘We Darphon call it a pacifier. It allows us to study dangerous aquatic life in the wild. Don't worry, the effects will wear off soon enough.’
‘What do you want with us?’ Falcon asked, becoming angry. She couldn't begin to guess why a Darphon had singled them out. She didn’t know much concerning their Order, only what was generally known by most of Courin. They hunted sclithe in the water and also involved themselves with environmental issues, especially where the oceans were concerned.
She didn't think a Darphon warrior would paralyse the two of them just so he could lecture them on efficient waste disposal.
Stingray leant back on the grass and hooked one arm about his knee. ‘You had quite the encounter today,’ he commented. ‘A much larger encounter than
Predgarians are used to, than Predgarians are supposed to.’
Falcon remained silent and so did Hawk. She wasn't sure how to respond to such a statement, and judging from his lack of reply neither did Hawk.
‘And now you're looking for another encounter with them.’
The silence stretched out.
‘You could've reported the incident to the Dakkonin,’ Stingray pressed.
‘It was a personal matter,’ Hawk told him.
‘True, the Dakkonin aren’t the most well-liked of Orders,’ Stingray continued, ignoring Hawk's words, ‘but you have to admit, they do know what they're doing.’
Hawk said nothing more and Falcon frowned to herself. Just what was this Darphon trying to achieve?
‘For instance, do you have any idea what sclithe look for when picking a new domain?’
‘Green gold,’ Falcon replied automatically, then kicked herself for not being more cautious.
Stingray burst into action. In a flash he was crouched next to Falcon. ‘Good answer. I'm happy to see you know the basics at least, but what else do they look for?’
Falcon frowned, just what did he want her to say? She thought back to when she'd worked in the Sarpien Order. She'd done expeditions to find new lairs for the sclithe. She'd led one of them, what had she looked for?
‘This is ridiculous,’ Hawk broke in, losing patience. ‘Just what do you want?’
Falcon's breath caught as she realised what Stingray was trying to accomplish. ‘Tunnels!’
‘Hm?’ Stingray murmured.
‘No sclithe would inhabit a place where there weren’t at least three routes of escape from a Dakkonin or Darphon attack.’
‘Exactly,’ Stingray purred. He stood abruptly and walked away.
A moment later Falcon squinted as a greenish light bathed the surrounding area. She looked over towards the river and for the first time noticed the vehicle that had been sat there the entire time. The light was radiating from the large cockpit. It was perhaps the size of a standard hopper but more streamlined and obviously designed to travel on or below water.
Falcon could now see what Stingray looked like. Like all Darphon, his steel armour was more close-fitting than in the other Orders, designed for quick movement under water. His helmet, though resembling the stingray, clearly had breathing apparatus. The colouring of his armour was an odd shifting grey-silver.
‘I’ll have to charge more next time,’ Stingray muttered, as if to himself. He glanced back towards his victims, ‘he never said anything about a silver Avian.’
He turned, jumped into the water and was gone, leaving the vehicle where it was.
Ten minutes went by before Falcon started to regain any sort of feeling in her arms and legs. Ever so slowly, she managed to get them working again and she tentatively got to her feet. Hawk was also starting to move around and she helped him up.
‘Who do you think he was talking about?’ Hawk whispered, nervously looking about in the eerie green.
Falcon understood how he felt. She was feeling a bit jumpy too. ‘I don’t know, another Darphon, I guess.’
She walked slowly and carefully over to the subterranean vehicle. The large hatch on the side had been left open and she ducked inside. There where ten seats positioned in a similar fashion to that of a hopper's. She strode between them and down the wide aisle, her steel boots ringing on the polished surface beneath her.
Falcon reached the cockpit and stood between the two pilot seats. As she leant over to look at the controls she saw that a single file had been placed on the helm. Picking it up, she opened it and began to leaf through the loose pages.
‘Falcon,’ Hawk called from the hatch. ‘What are you doing? We shouldn't be in this thing.’
‘Don't be so pedestrian,’ Falcon told him, still studying the papers.
Hawk choked. ‘Pedestrian?’ He stepped into the vehicle. ‘Hey, you might have been some dangerous, assassin-like Sarpien, but I'm no stick in the mud, all right?’ He pointed a thumb at himself. ‘I'll have you know that before I became a Pred I was a big name on the streets of Joinstohm.’
Falcon gave him an amused glance. ‘Don't give away all your secrets, Hawk. You never know, one of these days I might end up being a dangerous, assassin-like Sarpien again.’
She was surprised when Hawk leant against the frame of the hatch, not bothered by her words. ‘I thought the Emissaries wanted to kill you?’
Falcon shrugged uneasily. ‘They probably do, but Jackal doesn't.’
Hawk nodded. ‘He wants you back.’
She glanced up sharply. The way he'd that had been a bit too close to home. But Hawk couldn't possibly have any idea just how long she and Jackal had worked together. She decided to change the subject.
‘Come look at this.’
He joined her at the cockpit and looked over her shoulder. ‘What are they?’
Falcon turned her attention to the map she was holding up for him. With her finger she traced one of the many lines until she reached a particular location which had been marked out with a red marker pen. ‘Underwater travel routes.’
Hawk swore softly as he realised what she was showing him. ‘Is that..?’
She closed the file. ‘Yes. We need to let Lion and the others know. Where did Stingray throw our radios?’
‘Somewhere on the grass,’ he replied.
‘We have to find them.’
Hawk sighed and led the way back outside.
***
Jackal stared at the revealed metal lever on the wall beside the shimmering force field. He reached out his hand but hesitated, letting his arm drop again.
What was he waiting for? This is why he'd come here. Still, was he really going to do this? To allow this? Jackal shook his head and turned away. It was unthinkable, he was a Sarpien general, it went against everything he worked towards. It went against...his religion, he supposed.
He started to walk away but stopped, going back to the lever, glaring at it as if the switch itself was an enemy.
Jackal chuckled sadly. ‘If only you knew,’ he murmured as he pulled the lever firmly down. There was no difference to be seen when he looked at the glowing shield, but when he poked it with one finger it passed through the gateway and he could feel the water on the other side. Jackal drew his hand back, satisfied. The shield was down, making the portal which kept the water at bay accessible from the other side.
‘Alive or dead, Karen, you still bring out the worst in me.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Lion rushed out of the Centre with his bulky golden armour in place. He heard Dove behind him, hurrying to keep up but his focus was now the task at hand. He had team mates in potential danger. It didn't matter to him that Falcon had only joined them that day. In his mind, as long as she held that medallion, she was his responsibility.
‘Dove, with Hawk and Falcon's radios offline it limits our options. Can you find them?’
‘Using an aura sweep, you mean?’
Lion simply nodded his head.
Dove looked dubious. ‘Probably, but it may take a while. They could be anywhere, and I don't have night vision, remember.’
‘I'm sorry to ask, but you're the only one with the ability to-’ He cut off as his radio started vibrating. ‘Lion here, report.’
‘Bronze Hawk reporting in, Captain.’
‘Hawk, what happened?’ Lion asked, trying to keep the anger out of his voice. Hawk's laid back tone had irritated him.
Hawk paused. ‘Oh, you noticed that.’
‘Of course we noticed! What happened?’
‘Well, Falcon and I have found a way in. You should grab the others and come to us, we'll show you.’
Hawk's tone seemed evasive to Lion and he was about to tell him so when Falcon joined the conversation.
‘Hawk's right, Captain,’ she told him, sounding like any other Predgarian Lion had ever met. ‘What we've found will be easier to explain face to face, and it wouldn't be prudent to discuss strategy wh
ere it could be overheard or picked up.’
Lion gritted his teeth, all of these vague answers and excuses were winding him up. ‘I'll be right there.’ If they really had found an entrance, then there wasn't anything else he could say.
He noticed Dove looking at him. He thought her expression was disapproving. He knew he was being irrational, becoming angry over so small a thing. He couldn't help it, everything was moving towards their goal, but it all felt unstable. It felt like he wasn't in control of the situation.
He didn't say anything to Dove but contacted Wolf, Tiger and Leopard instead, telling them all to meet at Hawk's location.
After briefly looking at the location himself, he told Dove to wait while he retrieved his motorcycle. When he returned, Dove seated herself behind him and they sped away towards the other side of West Sector.
It'll be all right, Dove's voice penetrated Lion's mind. You have a team of very talented Predgarians.
Her words didn't make him feel much better. Talented or not, they were going up against Sarpiens.
Trust in their abilities, they trust in yours.
Lion blinked in surprise, forcing himself to stay focused on the road. You can hear me?
Yes, Dove responded after a moment. Many warriors find they can communicate telepathically when in armour. It's taken you longer than most though.
Thanks, he responded, allowing a tiny note of sarcasm to creep in. Dove could be a little tactless sometimes when it came to other people's aptitude for the Power. There weren't many in Steiron who could match her skill.