Making Peace, page 15
Captain arrived at my right side. “Go after them,” he said. “I’ll stay here and keep watch.” I grimaced but ran to follow the others outside.
The assassin ran across the tiled rooftops which looked down into lush gardens. Ahead of him, a bell tower rose out of the roof. Ugly and Shield were too far behind him, having been held back by the crowds. The hall was part of a larger building composed of other smaller halls stacked on top of one another, and we were six stories off the ground. I suppressed a shudder as I stepped out onto the smooth ceramic roof tiles. The roof sloped down and to our left; one bad move and we could slide right off the edge.
A falling glimmer of light in the distance caught my eye. The light of the full moon reflected off an object falling from the tower. The object separated into two as they drew closer to the rooftop. I realized it was Vapor carrying Sen by the hand as they drifted down as smoothly as a feather. They alighted softly on the ceramic tiles of the roof ahead of the killer and immediately moved into the assassin’s path. He had no choice but to engage them.
I was two hundred yards behind the assassin. Shield and Ugly were halfway between the assassin and me. Vapor and Sen had dropped in perhaps ten yards from the assassin. I wished Tavel would join us, but he was stationed on the other side of the massive rented hall, and would never catch up in time. That left Vapor and Sen to hold him in place long enough for us to catch up. From the look of things, they would have their hands full.
The assassin was a whirlwind. The moment Sen’s foot touched the ground, the assassin had already smashed into him with both blades. Sen got his longsword up in time to block, but the assassin’s momentum drove the Keeper back across the rooftop. Sen slipped and tumbled across the ceramic tiles, and managed to slow himself just before he slid over the edge.
The assassin tried to sprint through the opening, but Vapor sprang in front of him. She lashed out with her bladed staff, but he turned it aside with one sword. His second blade lashed in at her throat, and I figured she was done for. There was a sharp snap of instant ice and she blocked his sword with her bare hand, which was coated in a layer of ice. My relief was short lived as the assassin spun and smashed her side with a hard kick. She went down and slid along the tiles toward Sen. He reached out and dragged her to a halt with her feet hanging just over the edge of the roof.
The two had bought just enough time. Roof tiles cracked as Ugly hurtled along the rooftop and threw himself at the assassin, blade flashing in the moonlight. The enemy dodged Ugly’s first horizontal swing and then stepped in with both blades. Ugly locked the assassin’s blades with his sword, and grabbed the masked man’s wrist. They struggled for a moment until the assassin launched himself into the air and walked up Ugly’s face, twisting his wrist to break Ugly’s hold and kicking off into a backward somersault. Ugly’s face was forced hard back toward me, his eyes closed and with a spray of blood erupting from his split lip.
Shield dodged in under Ugly’s arms and came in low on the assassin, lunging into a perfect thrust at the masked man’s belly. He landed perfectly, already dancing into a twist. Some of the buckles on his leather armor separated with a twang as the sword kissed his belly. His twist turned into a spin and he came full around into a kick that struck Shield in the back of the head. She crashed down into the tiles so hard her body bounced. I feared she may not be getting back up.
Sen and Vapor rejoined the fight. Vapor stood over Sen’s shoulder, conjuring blocks of ice in the air to block the assassin’s blades. I was finally close enough that I could hear the masked man growling with frustration. What strikes Vapor couldn’t block, Sen slanted aside with his own blade.
The assassin leapt into the air and brought both feet down hard against Sen’s chest. Sen hurtled backward into Vapor, knocking them both off their feet. They slid fast toward the edge of the roof. Just before they went over, Vapor grabbed ahold of Sen and slapped her other hand down on the rooftop, leaving a trail of ice. They went over together and her hand was the only bit of her I could see, frozen in a block of ice which held her to the edge. They both cursed loudly as they swung out into open space, nothing between them and the road six stories below.
The assassin dashed away again just before I caught up. I was hot on his heels, five yards of distance between us. Ceramic tiles cracked as Ugly pounded along right behind me.
We were approaching the edge of the rooftop. There were no other buildings in reach and the masked man was going to have to stop. I remembered the chase along the river and I doubted he would just turn back.
I was right. The bastard leapt straight off the edge of the building.
Ugly and I skidded to a stop at the roof’s edge. A balcony jutted from the wall ten feet below us. The assassin was running along the balcony, back the way we had come. As we watched, he jumped down to the next balcony below, using them as stepping stones down the side of the hall.
Ugly and I shared a look: Who is this guy?
Ugly grunted and jumped after the assassin. I started to follow, but heard footsteps behind me. It was Shield, and she looked like hell: uniform torn, blood on her chin, and her hair a mess. Nevertheless, she sprinted up to the edge and launched herself over without pause. I followed.
We all raced the assassin to the bottom, heading toward the street below. The assassin reached the ground and took off sprinting back up the street toward the front of the hall, where we’d come from. We resumed the chase, thankfully on pavement instead of tile. I saw that Vapor had got her hand unstuck from the eaves ahead of the assassin, and she and Sen were doing their slow-fall trick again, but they wouldn’t be in time to stop him. They landed next to me and joined the pursuit.
I wondered what onlookers must have thought, a bunch of bloodied folks in fine uniforms chasing a masked man.
My lungs burned. I was at the end of my stamina. Shield was doing her best but I could hear her steps were uneven, and it was clear the hit to her head was taking a hard toll on her. Vapor and Sen were exhausted after getting tossed around. Her metal foot scraped the street, and his breathing was ragged. Ugly was the only one of us showing no sign of slowing or stopping as he pounded on relentlessly. The assassin, likewise, seemed to still have plenty of spring in his step and, being the lighter of the two, was starting to pull away.
If I’d had breath, I would have cursed. We were losing this race.
Vapor suddenly stopped and dropped downward beside me, and I was so startled I tripped over my own feet. I hit the pavement and rolled to a stop, and flipped around to face her. My mouth was open to ask what was wrong, but I snapped my jaw shut when I saw she had her eyes closed, hands together, and she was whispering something. She sprang upward onto the balls of her feet and thrust her hands into the air. A sharp snapping sound echoed above and all around us.
My panting breath turned visible. The temperature plummeted and frigid cold kissed my skin, the kind of cold that bites your ears off. Frost formed in the streets, climbing the walls. Up above us, thunder rolled. By the time I got to my feet, thick snowflakes had started falling. The air around my head wasn’t too bad, but my feet were aching with the cold. The snowflakes hit the pavement and stuck in place.
Sen came jogging back to us, having given up the chase. He bent over with his hands on his knees, then looked up at Vapor with a panting grin. “Frustration get the better of you?”
Vapor shook her head and pointed at the street behind Sen. He and I both turned to look. The puzzle took me a moment, but I got it: his footprints were clearly visible in the snow.
“It’s localized around me,” Vapor said behind us. “As long as I stay within a one-mile radius of the assassin, the street will be cold enough to hold the snow and show us his tracks.”
I glanced up the street just in time to see Shield slip and crash to the ground. Sen, Vapor, and I ran to her as fast as our burning lungs would allow. Ugly was nowhere in sight.
I crouched down next to Shield. She didn’t look good, all torn up and bleeding. She had pushed herself too hard, and her body rose and fell in ragged jerks with her gasping.
I lifted her in my arms and she whimpered, crushing her eyes shut with a grimace. I looked up at Sen. “You need to take her back to headquarters. Vapor and I will continue on with Ugly.” Sen looked like he was about to refuse, but Shield shuddered in my arms and whimpered again, and that convinced him. Sen knelt down and took Shield from me.
Vapor and I pressed on down the street, following two sets of tracks: one small and narrow, one massive and wide.
The footprints led to one of the spiraling hallways carved into the cliffs that connected one floor to the next. The snow stopped inside the tunnel, but immediately picked back up as soon as we were in the open. About a half-mile later, we came across Ugly sitting on a crate on the side of the road. He stood when he saw us coming and waited for us to approach. He smiled at Vapor and dropped a meaty paw on her head, ruffling her hair.
“Nice trick with the snow,” he said.
Vapor grinned up at him from under his hand.
Then Ugly looked at me. “How’s Shield?”
“Not good, but I think she’ll be fine. Sen is taking her home.”
Ugly nodded and pointed to the tracks. “I tried to make it look convincing, so maybe he’ll think he got away.” With that he began following the tracks at a jog. Vapor followed. Inwardly cursing my weak stamina, the assassin, the Keepers, and the entire town, I made myself pick up the pace and follow.
We trudged through the snow for another two miles. The trail led downward through several of the giant spiral ramps, down a few levels. We were drawing closer to the lower edge of Upper Town. The good news, as Ugly informed us, was the tracks were drawing closer together, indicating the assassin had stopped running. And because his tracks were still visible, we could assume he was within a mile of us.
The trail led us to another upward spiral connector, and we ascended two more floors. The tracks became more muddled. Even I could see the footprints pointing in different directions, tracking over each other. Ugly told us the assassin had stopped to check the area and look around. We slowed, sticking to the sides of buildings to minimize our visibility.
The tracks led to a massive blocky stone building, which I recognized as a storehouse. While most storehouses in Tiers were painted in the colors of the House they belonged to, this one was painted an ugly brown. That meant it was a private storehouse owned by someone too low to be recognized by a House. It stood about four stories tall and had no visible windows on the front of the building. The storehouse front bore a normal door beside two massive double doors for unloading goods.
Ugly covered his lips with one finger and pointed at Vapor and me, then to the left side of the building. Vapor grabbed me by the hand and dragged me along. Ugly disappeared around the right corner.
Vapor and I started checking our side, though I had no idea what we were looking for. I kept on the sharp lookout for guards, until I noticed her craning her head upward. I tried to follow her gaze but her eyes kept darting around. I tapped her on the shoulder and gave her a questioning shrug. She mimed opening a door, then a window, then gestured to take in the wall.
I turned back to the wall and frowned. There were no doors or windows on this entire side. The warehouse was probably about four stories tall, but the wall was unbroken. I walked up to the building and rubbed the wall with my fingertips. Solid stone. And painfully cold on my bare fingertips.
We proceeded around the back of the building, where we met up with Ugly. I noticed the back didn’t have any doors or windows, either. That meant the entire storehouse had only the front entrances, apart from roof access or underground levels.
We hurried back to the front, but there were no new tracks leading away from the doors. Ugly whispered into Vapor’s ear and she nodded. The temperature rose considerably, and the street steamed with the sudden release of frost. Within a few seconds, the snow under our feet had turned to mush. Vapor’s shoulders slumped in relief and she let out a small sigh.
Ugly moved toward the door and drew his short sword again. I did the same, clutching mine like some sort of talisman. I forced myself to lower the weapon to my side as Ugly checked the door. He waved us back and tried the knob. It didn’t turn.
Vapor crept forward and tapped the knob once with her finger and it was instantly rimed with frost. She reached up and traced her finger slowly down the entire crack of the door along the hinges. A trail of ice followed her finger. She backed away and joined me in cowering behind a crate ten feet from the door.
Ugly kicked the door in with a mighty crash. With the splintering of wood and the tinkling of shattering ice, the door flew off its hinges and launched into the dark storehouse. Instantly I heard several twangs and thuds. Vapor and I joined Ugly at the open entrance. The remains of the door lay inside, pierced with three crossbow bolts. My mouth went painfully dry.
“Ugly… Are we really going in there?”
He gave me an appraising look. “Scribbler, I need you with me on this. It’s just the three of us. If we let him get away, there will be more killing.”
He was right. I drew a breath and nodded, to which he smiled. As usual when I’m uncomfortable, I tried to lighten the mood. “You’re one to talk about killing. Sure you can’t let him go? Professional courtesy, and all that?”
Ugly’s smile disappeared and the look that replaced it felt like maybe Vapor hadn’t let the ice go after all. Ugly turned and walked into the building. Vapor elbowed me and followed him. I entered last.
Ugly stepped on the door and stopped, looking around the room. A long, narrow hallway ran half the length of the building, a hallway with a vaulted ceiling. The wan moonlight coming in through the door left most of the room in shadow. Vapor closed her fist and her eyes, then tossed her hand up in the air as if she were throwing something. Three glowing orbs flew up into the air and hung about two feet above her head, lighting the hallway for us. The room was empty except for three crossbows mounted on stands, pointing at the door. Lengths of wire lay scattered around, having been torn free when Ugly kicked in the door. The walls were made of brown stone blocks carved from the local quarries. Even the inner walls of the building were made of stone. Only one door stood at the far end of the room, a heavy thing bound with metal bands. We crossed carefully to it after finding no more traps. Ugly tried the heavy door and it opened easily.
The next room was similarly bare. Ugly motioned for us to hold and entered by himself. Vapor and I crowded outside the first door and scanned the room as he walked through it. This room was a perfect square, twenty feet on each side. More bare walls and blank stone floors. Another door of the same make stood at the far end of the room. After he had checked the room for around a minute, he motioned us to follow and reached for the other door.
Vapor entered first, then myself. As my back foot crossed the threshold of the first door, I heard a loud click overhead. The door behind us slammed shut. Massive bars shot out of the sides and rammed into the walls, bolting the door shut. Ugly wrenched on the other door’s knob, but it too had been bolted. We were sealed in.
A square space in the center of the of the sandy floor slid apart with another click. The three of us pressed back against the walls. A spiraling metal tower clutching a glass orb the size of a human head rose into view. The tower locked into place when it had reached four feet in height, and the small trapdoors sealed shut again around the base. A strange humming began, the sensation pulsing in my teeth.
Vapor rushed to the pedestal. She fluttered around like an anxious bird as she examined the device.
Ugly joined her. “Vapor, what is this thing?”
She held out one hand toward the glass orb. Her eyes fell half closed. Then they widened. “It’s a projector. It transmits pure energy to power other devices. But this projector has no filter. It’s going to vent everything into this room.” Her voice rose as she spoke, trying to top the humming. The sound was pulsing in my joints, making them throb.
Ugly’s face was grim as he moved to the second door and began running his fingers over it. “There’s got to be a catch – a safety mechanism, something to get us out.”
Vapor shook her head. Her eyes were getting wider and her long hair was starting to stand on end from the electricity in the room. “I bet the assassin has a talisman to prevent the trap.”
Ugly grunted and turned back to squint at the orb.
“We can’t break the orb, it just would explode!” Vapor was shouting to be heard.
Was she reading Ugly’s mind, or mine?
Ugly sounded firm, not panicked. “I need some options, Vapor. This is your department.”
The wind picked up. Swirling mist spilled forth from the orb. As the mist rose, the air in the room suddenly spun into a tornado all around us. We were all flung back and pinned against the walls. The air was pressed from my lungs with a gasp.
Ugly tried to surge forward and made it only one foot forward before he was flung back. The device was crackling with electricity. The hum pulsed inside my organs, racking me with pain. I couldn’t move under the crushing weight.
On the other side of the room, Vapor suddenly pushed herself forward. She leaned into the wind and forced her way toward the pedestal inch by inch. Her long black hair whipped wildly around her, purple robes flapping and tearing. She tried to shout something, but the sound was lost in the wind.
Vapor stopped within reach of the orb, closed her eyes, and took a couple of deep breaths. Her lips were moving, and I strained to read them. She was saying, “You can do this, you can do this,” over and over to herself. Her blue eyes flew open and she splayed her fingers over the orb, hands sliding on the smooth surface. Instantly, her back arched. She began to shudder violently all over. Blue light came pouring from her eyes, nose, and ears. Tiny lights twinkled all over her body, and with horror I realized the energy was leaking out through her very pores. Her glowing mouth was open but there was no scream coming out, just a sort of silent gasping.
