Authors: Matt Stephens
They made their way down the passage until they suddenly emerged upward through the floor of a room Vincent didn't recognize.
"What's he doing here?" A small voice called, and Vincent jumped. It was Kamy. The Lostkind girl was perched on the edge of their entrance, watching like a hawk.
"He's here to save the world." Dorcan snorted lightly, and Vincent got a look at the room. It was the same shape and size as Yasi's chamber, and Vincent realized suddenly that it was one of the living quarters in Twelfth Level. There were a row of swords against one wall, and a row of the Lostkind crossbows along the opposite.
And in the room was the Resistance. Five Shinobi, plus Dorcan, Three male, two female. Some of them were wounded, some of them barely standing, all tired, all determined. And none of them were smiling at Vincent.
Dorcan spoke first, waving them all down. "Guys, this is Vincent McCall."
His name rolled over all of them at the same instant and their eyes turned on him. Vincent had the feeling of being dissected.
Dorcan made introductions. "This is Dyce, Trigger, Gritt and Takal. This is what's left of the Shinobi. The ones that Stayed." There was bitterness in his voice; and Vincent could see a similar sentiment on all their faces.
"Stayed?" Vincent repeated.
Meaning, someone had left?
But Dorcan sent him a look that told him not to comment, and he dropped it.
"So, what's he doing here?" Dyce demanded. "Look at him, he's got to be a good five pounds above normal."
"Got good clothing though." Gritt put in. "Maybe a little soft."
"Soft ain't a deal breaker." Dyce put in, amused. "Just means he can block more blades headed our way."
"Unless he runs away."
"Soft means easy to catch."
Vincent smirked, feeling like he was being hazed by Benji and Tony again. It was so downright normal that it made him smile.
Dorcan, however, was not smiling at all. "As much as I'd like to watch you all keep going with this; we're on something of a clock right now. Kamy?
The youngest of the Lostkind stood up and began reading notes off her arms. "Fourteen Riverfolk in the Main Intersection, twenty five at the Twelfth Level, five in each of the Marketplaces. I couldn't get into the Whisper Gallery. All the Wildmen I saw were with Vandark, always."
"How many Riverfolk are there?" Vincent asked. "Because Dorcan said that they couldn't go far above Twelfth Level; but two of them were guarding the entrance."
"They're not all really Riverfolk. Vandark has some of his people dressed up in costumes... He knows that the Riverfolk are terrifying monsters to our people, and he's taking advantage. We thought that the Riverfolk had been cleaned out." Dorcan said quietly. "There were Riverfolk bodies showing up years ago... Not a lot of them, but Yasi thought that the River had been taken over. That's why we added more razor nets."
Kamy pointed to the maps on the walls. "There's enough of them that Vandark can keep his people close to him. I snuck into the Whisper Gallery and checked Archivist's books. The ones that we've got running around aren't the ones in charge. The Riverfolk Captains? I haven't seen
any
of them."
Dorcan nodded. "Those bodies Wotcha found three years ago were the victims of a coup. Vandark had the loyalty of the Riverfolk years before we knew his name."
Kamy bit her lip. "Vandark is smart; huh?"
Dorcan nodded. "Yes."
Vincent spoke up. "The slogan you guys have painted on the walls; about the Three Rules. Have the Riverfolk broken them?"
Silence.
Dorcan barked. "Answer him. Have the Riverfolk broken the rules?"
"No." Kamy said. "Not that the Gremlins have seen. They don't have to; they've got everything they need right here."
Dyce hissed angrily. "With them all over the place; we can barely move without being caught. If it wasn't for the Riverfolk as reinforcements; we'd have the city back in ten minutes!"
Dorcan looked at Vincent; who nodded. "We might be able to make that happen." He said seriously. "We had planned to do hit and run attacks; but with Vincent's inclusion, that can't happen." Dorcan informed his people. "This war is going to end today."
The gathered Shinobi were stunned. "How?"
Vincent started to speak. "I have a friend on the surface, who will-"
Dorcan put a hand out. "He doesn't need to know that part. If they did, one of them might try and stop you; and then we'd have Yasi to answer to." A chuckle went around the room at that.
"Always be nice to the Captain's Pet?" Trigger quipped.
The second he said it, the room fell into a sudden awkward silence; and Vincent froze.
Are they talking about Merlin… or me?
Dorcan set his jaw. "While Trigger takes her foot out of her mouth; here's the game plan: We have to cover Vincent; while he makes contact from the Whisper Gallery."
"I like it." Dyce scoffed. "Simple, elegant, ridiculous. You're basing the whole fight on someone who… quite frankly, is the main reason Vandark was even able to get in here! And his plan is one we've tried before; and failed. Didn't losing Archivist tell you anything?"
"It told me that we weren't finished yet. Archivist's message was meant to inspire resistance. Vincent's message is meant to inspire an unconditional surrender." Dorcan was silent a moment. "If Yasi were here, she'd say that Rule One worked against us. We were so used to going unnoticed by the world, suddenly it was all out in the open; and we lost. Some ran away because of that. But we didn't, and it's better to have a dozen people you trust than a thousand you can't. Yasi trusted you; and I trust you too; and with good reason: You repaid that trust at every step of the darkest hour this place has ever seen. Yasi trusted Vincent, and now he's come here to repay that trust. That's something we have in common with him, even if he's not Lostkind."
Everyone glanced at Vincent again, and he kept his chin up. It was easier to take pride in what Dorcan had said, because all of it was true.
Dorcan reached out a hand and checked Vincent's wrist. "The clock's ticking. We'll take the ropelines to the top of the Seven Steps, the tunnels from there to the elevator. There are enough of us that we can look like a band of Borrowers, as long as we keep the weapons hidden. We just make our way toward the Labyrinth, and slip off when we get near the elevator to the Whisper Gallery. I want cover, but stay behind us from the Basket on, and close with us once we get into the Tunnels, out of sight. Any questions?"
"What happens then?"
Dorcan's face was a perfect stone wall. "You'll see."
~oo00oo~
"Why didn't you tell them the rest of the plan?" Vincent asked.
"Because I honestly think they'd rather take their chances with Vandark." Dorcan said lightly. "Just between you and me… How do you see this ending? Because even if we get you to the Whisper Gallery…"
"I know." Vincent admitted thickly.
It was the first time they'd had a moment of privacy since leaving the garden. The two of them were suspended in mid-air in one of the basket elevators, slowly making their way on the pulleys toward the ground below.
"How many people up there know the plan?" Dorcan asked him.
"Does it matter?"
"Not in the least." Dorcan said seriously. "We have at least a minute of waiting for the basket to hit concrete; and the silence is going to make me crazy given the stakes; so I'm looking for unimportant chit-chat."
"Okay. How about this? Are you still in love with Yasi?" Vincent challenged suddenly.
Dorcan swallowed thickly, biting down on his first response. "Jeez, a
little
less important than that would have been nice." He repeated finally. "It was that obvious?"
"To everyone." Vincent confirmed.
"Except her." Dorcan snorted. "To answer your question; no. I followed her around like a puppy, and got kicked in the face for my trouble. There's only so many times you can get that before you quit coming back for more; as I have."
Vincent nodded. "Okay."
Dorcan looked out of the corner of his eye at him. "Do yourself a favor, and don't try with her. She's the Sword of the Underside. Just steel and edges. She stands alone; and always has. You think you can change that?"
Vincent was about to respond, when the basket lurched, and Vincent looked up in horror. A Riverfolk was less than six inches away. Above, looking past him, Vincent could see a second basket full of enemy troops, jumping down from one ropeline to the next.
Dorcan struck, slashing out with his sword. The Riverfolk dropped properly into their basket, and Dorcan was all but smothered. "Out! Get out of this thing!" Dorcan snapped, pummeling the Riverfolk with short jabs.
"Where the hell should I go?" Vincent blurted, pressed against the inside wicker wall as tight as he could. Above, he could see Dorcan's allies using their sheathed swords as handles, sliding down the ropelines themselves, letting gravity bring them to the battle that was unfolding in mid-air above the Seven Steps.
Like that?
A terrified, analytical part of his mind thought.
The basket bounced again, hard enough to almost toss them all out, as a second attacker dropped to pounce on them. Dorcan was surrounded, with no room to strike back properly. "Vincent, GO!"
There was no choice.
"Rule Two." Vincent told himself with quiet desperation. "Be Daring."
Heart pounding, he shrugged off the long coat and stepped out into the open space, clinging to the side of the basket as tight as he could, and threw his jacket over the ropeline, using it as a handle… And he pushed off.
Smothering a scream, he slid down the line, feeling himself get faster and faster as he sped toward the ground; faster than he could ever remember moving before…
Refusing to look down, he looked back the way he came, and saw Dorcan doing the same. A level above them, his team of Shinobi were getting into the fight with the Riverfolk reinforcements…
And then the rope snapped, and he dropped, his momentum sending him skidding along the surface of the step, rolling out of control toward the edge. Every time he rolled he came over hard on the crossbow, harder on his face, again on the Crossbow.
He felt the ground vanish beneath him and knew he was finished, when Something slammed into his leg, and everything came to a wrenching halt.
Upside down, battered and bruised, Vincent looked up and saw Dorcan had managed to check his momentum and stop Vincent from falling. It took a few seconds to organize themselves into a position that Dorcan could haul him back up.
And those few seconds was all the time needed for the omnipresent guards to start moving in on them.
"Run!" Dorcan hissed, and roughly pulled Vincent toward one of the Tunnels leading away from the Twelfth Level, into the Underside's many pathways.
In this area, there were always people moving, Borrowers with heavy burdens, making their way to the surface, runners taking messages, kids marking new paintings on the walls…
Dorcan clapped a hand on Vincent's shoulder and yanked them all to a halt. "We can't lead the Riverfolk Guards into these people up ahead." He said, breathing hard. "And the plan is shot to hell anyway; Vandark's going to know where we're going before we get anywhere close. He won't be able to miss a running, screaming fire-fight the entire way to the Whisper Gallery."
Vincent checked his watch. "Forty-five minutes. You got a better idea?"
The Riverfolk had organized themselves at the mouth of the tunnel, and began charging the length of it, looking for the two of them. Dorcan looked at Vincent darkly. "It's on you now, good luck, and tell Yasi… ahh, she knows."
A chilling premonition struck Vincent and he tried to stop the Shinobi from drawing away. "No! Dorcan, no!"
Dorcan pushed Vincent's hands away, and drew his sword. "Do the job. Save the Underside. I'll buy you as long as I can."
Heartsick, feeling hopeless, Vincent ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction, as Dorcan made his way down the Tunnel to face the pursing forces. A moment later there was the sound of steel on steel; but Vincent didn't look back.
~oo00oo~
Yasi tensed as Owen came back into the Throne Room. Vandark had kept her within three feet of him since finding out about Vincent. Three guards on her every second, instead of the usual two; plus Vandark. Her odds had not improved. The guards had their weapons drawn, and one of them aiming at her at all times.
"What's the latest?" Vandark demanded.
Owen looked nervous. "We tracked down the Gremlins. They were hiding in a room on Twelfth Level, which belonged to the father of one of the Shinobi. We found their weapons there."
Vandark just waited.
Owen steeled himself. "We found the ones in hiding, but they were able to fight their way out and esc-"
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?" Vandark bellowed.
Everyone but Yasi cowered. She wasn't worried. Vandark could go from friendly to homicidal in a heartbeat, but he wasn't crazy. He played crazy from time to time to keep people running for their lives, but he didn't scream in anger. The move was meant to intimidate, and it did.