Selena
Technology. Technology could always be trusted. The rules of the world were complex, and sometimes she was a little bit wrong, but once she knew the rules, they stayed the way they were. Material properties, for instance, always stayed the same.
Selena pulled back the drawstring again, and the motor chuffed into an idle. The material didn't fracture easily, and its elastic nature made blunt trauma an unappealing option. But... there was always abrasion, and the material was most definitely less durable than the metal of her poor Mark IV's gears.
Dismantling the autocrossbow for the parts she needed was simple – she just had removed the motor and fuel, then jury-rigged the drive chain to instead spin a square-toothed gear. The rest was going to be finding the fastest spin that still provided enough power to grind through the goo. In fact, the only real trouble was assembling it all with only one arm.
Selena revved the motor, then set the gear to work, sawing away down her left arm. The tool worked better than she had expected, grinding its way down through the hardened goop. She stopped when she could feel her vambrace being abraded. Then she moved up her arm, an inch every two seconds or so. In less than a minute, her other arm was free. Now that she could move her elbow, she instead focused on her hand, etching deep lines across the joints. Then she set her new tool down, and smashed the hand free against the ground.
Interesting. The goop was getting harder and more brittle, yet at the same time not sticking to her flesh as well as it had. This boded well for her freedom, less well for future possible uses of the goo. Oh well.
Now that she had both arms free, she need to get her torso moving, so she could get to work on her legs. Perhaps if the goop was less sticky... no, it would have soaked into the linen trousers. Selena frowned. But her torso first.
“Uuugh...” came a groan from her side.
“Hey Glynn, welcome to the world of the waking.”
“Urgh.” The man struggled to a sitting position. Selena had had Perl show her the man's injuries earlier, but the face that came into her view now was far more swollen. The nose was still in the same position Perl had pulled it into, but now the rest of the man's features had moved around it, a strange mix of swelling and bruising.
“Sorry about that,” said Selena. She got back to sawing at her midsection, working her way down the side. She wasn’t the one who needed to apologise, really, but better a minor fix than nothing.
The man reached up and touched his face, then flinched. “I'm not dead.”
Selena shook her head. “I didn't realize that Perl had such hatred of Southerners. Bad experiences or something – he thought you had modified my mind.”
Glynn touched his neck, feeling the bruises around his throat. “That would be... an abomination.” He cupped his hands and spat something into them. “Plus I'm not that good at magic. Kallaster's the proper, ranking magician.” He coughed, then winced.
Selena had sawed her way down one side of the leather cuirass, and now she tried prying at it. No give. The goop had formed a solid piece going all the way down her legs, and the stuff on her torso was connected to that. Fun all around. “Maybe you should tell Perl that.”
“I don't think he'd care.”
“Uh... yeah.” Selena was sawing across her midsection now. “Just... well, he nearly killed you there. If I hadn't reminded him that Sunder was working with you, I think he would have strangled you. I... I'm not a people person, but if we're going to get out of this alive, you two need to be able to work together.”
Glynn grunted, then massaged his upper arms. Well, that would have to do.
“Hey, are you well enough to cut down here? I don't have any leverage to press the gear down.”
“Forgive me if I don't get involved with that again.”
“Ah... right.” Progress on her lower torso was slow, and her neck was getting tired of looking down her front at the mechanism.
There was knock at the door. “It's Perl.”
“Come in.”
The big man opened the door, a severe expression on his face. He shot Glynn a venomous look, then plodded over to Selena. “Put that hand I freed to good use, I see. I couldn't see any of the dead outside, so I scavenged around in this building. Got some food, and some more clothing.” He tossed some dirty clothes down. “Didn't know what fit, so brought them all.” He set two backpacks down. “We have a lot of food now, enough for a few days. That Southerner had a good deal of other equipment with him. I don't know if Jack and the rest will still be waiting at Narma's, so I thought we should be prepared for Parveno.”
Selena set her head down, and paused at the sawing. “Right. Thanks.” Well, as good a time as any. “You should apologize to Glynn for beating him.”
Perl snorted, then turned to Glynn. “Mr. Sunder looked to be trusting you. He knows people. I promised to follow his judgment over my own, so I'm doing that now. Doesn't mean I like you. Doesn't mean I trust you. I'm Jack's second in command. You do as I say, we stay under Jack's rules. He thought you were acceptable help. Prove his judgment wrong, and I'll cut the head from your shoulders. One false move, and you're dead.” Perl spat. “And Selena's in charge of you, so you better go help her.”
Perl turned and plodded over to the door, shaking his head. “One false move, Southerner. One.” He closed the door behind him, and his footstep faded into the distance.
Well, so much for apologies.
Glynn Fifer
Glynn closed the door behind him. The hallway was darker than the room, possessing no windows or lights, with the barest glow of moonlight coming from the outside, around a corner. Glynn touched his swollen left eye, wishing he could open it. The lack of depth perception was unsettling. “Perl. Are you there?”
“What is it, southerner?” Perl's voice was frustrated, angry. He loomed into view, faintly visible in the moonlight.
“We finished cutting up the goo. Selena's prying off the chunks now, and changing into the clothes you provided.”
“I see.”
“I... I want you to know that I never fought in that war. My family had me training to be an officer, once, but the war ended a year into my training, and so I got switched over to administrative training.
Silence.
“I also have nothing against you northerners. Everyone I've met here as been just fine. Simple, but good people, nevertheless.”
More silence.
“And... you should know that I'm not very good at magic. My cousin Kallaster is the proper Magus. I--”
“Don't talk about your magic. I don't want to hear it.”
“Well...”
“Are you disobeying me?”
“No. No sir.”
Perl stepped back out of view, and Glynn sat down next to the door. What did Perl have against southerners, anyway? Selena had mentioned that the burly man had mentioned seeing mind alteration being used in war, but that was impossible. Mind alteration was a horrific crime, at least in the Republic, and the practice was banned, even for soldiers in war.
The door opened next to him, and Selena stood there, next to him. She was wearing a skirt. The young lady looked down at him. “Did you get Perl? I'm mostly ready – I just need to put together my crossbow again.”
“He's down that hallway. Don't shout.”
“I wasn't going to.” The young lady hurried past him, down the hallway, and disappeared around the corner.
Glynn sighed. Such was his life. Eventually he'd be able to meet up with his crazy cousin, and then they could leave this angry soldier behind. After all, traveling with Kallaster was always such a pleasure, he only wanted to set himself on fire half of the time. Someday... someday he would be able to leave this all behind.
...but in the mean time, this was his life. With a groan, the southerner stood, and made his way over to the corner.
“Absolutely not. I'm not willing to risk it.”
“I only have a cartridge and a half left, Perl.”
“Well, shoot carefully. We aren't going to go collect bolts, and that's final.”
“Perl...”
“We meet with Jack there, you can build more bolts after that. Now let's go.”
Glynn could hear Perl's heavy footsteps approaching the corner, so he made his way back into the room. His pack now had a reassuring amount of weight to it again, and Glynn was happy to find the extra room filled with bread and cheese. He put it on as Perl entered the room.
“Ready to go, Southie?” The big man picked up his own pack, and put it on. “Quiet as we can, sneak over to Narma's. Hopefully, nobody will start shouting.” Glynn felt the last sentence was particularly directed at him, quite unfairly, but this wasn't the place to protest.
Selena picked up her own pack, and disassembled the cutting device. Then she reassembled it with the rest of the pieces Glynn had cleaned.
“Okay, ready to go.”
Perl headed out the door, followed by Selena. With a sigh, Glynn checked over the room one last time, and started after them.
Maureen
Maureen tipped her head forward, and swallowed, carefully. He face twinged anyway, a spasm of pain shooting across her cheek and jaw. She put the spoon back in the bowl, and leaned back.
“You have to eat, Maureen,” said Narma.
Maureen nodded, and tried for another spoonful. The broth was warm, and surprisingly thick. There were some herbs in it, and a strangely familiar flavor that reminded her of meat, somehow. But it was mostly boiled bread, Maureen decided. Her memory was hazy, but she was sure she had seen the old woman tearing bread into little chunks and dropping the bits into the pot.
“Your friends will be back soon, I'm sure.”
Maureen sipped another spoonful, and managed to swallow the liquid. The old woman had said that before.
“I think you'll like Kara. Kara's like a daughter to me, you know.”
Maureen nodded. Narma had also mentioned Kara before. Maureen took another sip, then paused. She could hear the creep of the steps in the stairway. She swallowed hastily. “Grandmother, someone is coming.”
“Mmm... I told you they were coming.” The old woman stood up. “Help me move the table, would you please?”
Maureen stood up. The strength of the rest of her body came as a bit of a shock, after all the trouble struggling down soup. Maureen grabbed a leg of the table, and slid it away from the door. Okay, maybe she was feeling a little bit dizzy.
Someone was knocking on the other side. “Narma, are you there? This is Selena.”
“Yes, yes, Maureen is up, and helping me with the door.”
Maureen grabbed the cabinet, and pulled it out of the way as well. Then she unlocked the latch on the door.
The handle turned, and in came Selena and some strange man. Maureen looked at them curiously. Selena was wearing a blouse and a skirt, both a little too large for her. Selena never wore skirts or dresses. Maureen was sure of it. And who was the new man? His face was all bruised and puffy, one eyebrow so swollen that one of his eyes could barely open.
“Maureen, this is Glynn Fifer. Glynn, this is Maureen.”
The man bowed slightly, and Maureen returned the gesture, though it made her face throb.
Selena pursed her lips. “You two look about the same.”
Maureen stared at Glynn. Did she look like that? Narma didn't have looking glass.
“Not very talkative right now, I see. You can move your jaw, right?”
“Yes,” Maureen said, being careful to pronounce it correctly. It hurt about as much as she had expected. “Where is everyone?”
“Perl's down by the doorway. I take it that Mr. Sunder and Lore didn't come here at all, then?”
Maureen shook her head.
“Weird, I thought we would be the late ones. I hope they are alright.”
Maureen tilted her head to one side. It made her a bit woozy, like the brains were sloshing around in her head. Well that was a charming thought.
“Oh. We got separated. Jack and Lore are with... Kara and Kallaster?” She turned to the man with the smashed face.
“Yes, Kallaster is my cousin, and Kara was a lady your man Mr. Sunder was escorting. They said that they would meet us here, or over in Parveno.”
Parveno. Maureen could see Jack's reasoning there. Dreto would probably be the best person to go to for advice about this disease, unpleasant as he might be. Apparently Selena didn't recognize the name, which meant Perl hadn't told her about Dreto. Just as well, probably.
“Are you well enough to travel? It's not far from here to the wall, and then we can hide in a cave for the rest of the night, rest there.” She turned to Narma, who was stirring the pot some more. “Grandmother, are you ready to travel?”
Narma shook her head. “I think I'd rather stay here.”
“But... grandmother, you can't just live here forever.”
“No, I'm going to die one way or the other.” She looked up at Selena and smiled. “My husband is dead, son is dead, my grandson is dead... there's nothing left for me here. I'm just waiting to die, and I'm not going to be a burden on you kids. You're going to have a hard enough time surviving already.”
“No, you can't do that. There's still stuff to live for!”
Narma went back to stirring the pot. “You're young, you wouldn't understand. Let me stay here in my peace and quiet. Go off, and live your lives. Maybe I'll outlast this whole mess... I've outlasted everyone else, after all.”
Selena stared at the old woman, her lips pressed tightly together. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. It's my choice, don't let it weigh upon your heart.” The old woman slowly made her way over to a bag. Maureen recognized it as her own. “Maureen, I've packed your bag for you. Put it on, and leave the city before the sun rises again.”
Maureen nodded, and went over to pick up the bag. Narma stopped her.
“Before you go,” she said. The old woman reached out and wrapped her shriveled arms around Maureen, in a frail hug. Maureen hugged her back gently. “You'll like Kara. Keep her safe when you meet her, okay? And take care of yourself, too.”
“Yes, grandmother.”
“Promise me.”
“I promise, grandmother.”
“Thank you, dear.” Narma went back over to the pot. “Now go, before the night grows too old.”
Maureen followed Selena and the man out the door, then turned back to look at Narma. The old woman was stirring her pot, looking down and watching the contents, as if they were all that existed in the world.
Maureen started down the stairs.
Next: Chapter 13