CHAPTER 6 - A DEADLY PAIR
Ghashburz looked back at the Island of Numenor as he steered the yacht away from it. He looked forward and saw Aiwen lying face-forward on the deck, wearing sunglasses and a string bikini. She was a dazzling sight as always, her long black hair flowing in the breeze. He thought back to the first time he met her, three years ago...
-
Ghashburz sat at one end of a desk, a man with his face hidden in the shadows sitting on the other side.
"Good afternoon. So you are the one they call the dark flame. You have quite a reputation."
"I have been known to offer good services in the past." said Ghashburz.
The man continued. "I am a representative of the Green Dragon gang, and we have a mission for you which we are prepared to offer a substantial sum of money for."
The man pushed a folder on the desk toward him. Out of some strange coincidence of the lighting, the man's face remained in the shadows throughout the movement. Ghashburz opened up the folder and gazed upon the face of a beautiful elf, one who he had never met in person but had heard about.
"Aiwen." he said with a smile. "She's the only assassin in Khazad-Dum with a kill count rivaling my own."
"And she is working for the Rangers, which makes her our enemy. Business for the Green Dragon will proceed much more smoothly when she is terminated. So do we have a deal?"
"It would be an honor."
The next week he spent trying to track down his elusive target, but one day in a dark alley of Khazad-Dum he realized that Aiwen had also been tracking him down. They met at opposite sides of the alley, seeing each other through the steam coming out from a vent of a nearby building. They started walking toward each other slowly.
"How much am I worth to you?" Aiwen said calmly.
"Three hundred thousand cash." answered Ghashburz. "And me?"
"About the same. Let's make this fair. Draw on three."
They continued walking toward each other. Ghashburz's heart rate increased and he could feel the effects of adrenaline working through his system.
"One." said Aiwen.
He started to analyze his situation. Two Stings, sixteen bullets in each, in shoulder holsters, safeties off. Four spare magazines.
"Two." said Ghashburz.
No body armor, very little cover: abandoned car, corner of the building, dumpster.
"Three!" they said together.
Less than twenty feet away from each other, they both simultaneously reached for their weapons, both wielding dual Stings. The next fifteen seconds were a slow-motion blur as they fired at each other, spinning in dance-like movements smoothly between bullets streaming in both directions. They whirled around each other, keeping just outside the lethal sights of each other's guns, the sounds of explosive gunshots and bullet ricochets echoing in their ears until they both met in the center in a whirlwind of pistol smoke. Realizing he was out of ammo, he dropped his guns and quickly pulled out a knife and held it at her neck, stopping when through the wafting smoke he saw that she had a knife poised at his neck at the same time. He could feel the pressure of the steel blade on his neck with every pulse of his racing heart. They stared into each others' eyes, out of breath, for a long minute before Aiwen broke the silence.
"Seems we have a stalemate here. Shall we call it a draw?"
"Sounds good to me. Perhaps I'll kill you another day." he said.
They leaned closer to each other and kissed. They sheathed their knives and walked off in opposite directions.
-
"Ghash, you awake?" asked Aiwen. "You looked a little zoned out there."
"Sorry, I was thinking back to the alley in Khazad-Dum."
"Don't tell me you're going soft and sentimental on me now." Aiwen laughed.
Ghashburz chose not to respond to that. He shut off the yacht's engine and walked toward her on the deck, carrying a laptop computer. He opened it up and opened a cellular internet connection. Almost immediately text appeared on the screen.
WHY DID YOU NOT COMPLETE THE MISSION?
Ghashburz groaned, trying to find the best way to respond. He decided to stretch the truth just a little bit.
THE TARGET'S CONTACTS ARRIVED. THEY HAD US OUTNUMBERED AND THEY HAD AIR SUPPORT
It was technically true. There were three of them, but only one was armed, and the guy had to be at least 70 years old, but their employer didn't need to know that. He waited a painfully long time for a response.
WAS ONE OF THE CONTACTS AN ELDERLY MAN WITH A LONG BEARD?
"How did he know?" said Aiwen.
Ghashburz shrugged.
YES
UNDERSTANDABLE. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO KILL HIM. HE IS BEYOND YOUR SKILLS.
Ghashburz raised an eyebrow at the message.
I DON'T UNDERSTAND
YOU DON'T NEED TO. NOW, THE PAYMENT: ALTHOUGH YOU FAILED, I WILL WIRE YOU HALF THE PROMISED AMOUNT.
"Shit! I wanted the whole thing!" whined Aiwen.
"Just be glad he didn't decide to leave us with nothing." said Ghashburz.
THANK YOU, SIR
A window opened up, showing the progress of the financial transaction.
I HAVE ONE MORE MISSION FOR YOU TWO. THIS WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT, SO YOU WILL BE REWARDED TWO MILLION EACH ON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.
That got Ghashburz's pulse racing for a moment.
DETAILS?
NOT OVER THIS CONNECTION. RETURN TO KHAZAD-DUM IMMEDIATELY. WE WILL BRIEF YOU AND PROVIDE THE NECESSARY TOOLS.
The computer beeped as the transaction was completed, and Ghashburz closed the connection.
"We're going back to Khazad-Dum." said Aiwen. "Isn't it romantic?"
Ghashburz wrapped his arms around her.
-
Jimmy looked up at the sheer rock face, looming oppressively over him.
"The walls of Moria." said Mayathir, bringing the motorcycle to a stop.
"I feel like I just jumped into the pages of Lord of the Rings." said Jimmy. "There's the lake. Better not disturb the water, if I remember correctly."
"Good idea. Drug smugglers have been known to mysteriously disappear around this area. Maybe that octopus thing in the lake is just a myth but I'm not going to test the theory."
Mayathir dismounted, and started to run his hands along the wall. "Should be around here somewhere..." he slipped his right hand into a crack, and moved down. He stopped and smiled. He pushed something in the crack and there was a rumbling sound. Slowly, a portion of the wall moved forward and slid to the side, revealing a small cave. Uglakh gulped. He had heard rumours of Moria before, but never imagined that he would actually see it. Mayathir motioned to Jimmy and Uglakh to follow him in. He walked forward cautiously, his right hand poised over one of his crossbows. It was a small cave with a metal door set into the stone at the end. Mayathir stepped to the door and knocked. A section of stone next to the door opened up, revealing a large gun on a turret, facing him. Behind the turret was a small window, and he could see the face of a dwarf looking at him, a large scar running down diagonally from his forehead.
"Stop right there." said the dwarf through an intercom. "Say the password. You have three seconds.
"Mellon." answered Mayathir.
The rock slid back into place in front of the gun turret, and the door opened.
"How he know this stuff?" Uglakh whispered to Jimmy.
Jimmy didn't answer. Mayathir walked through the door and they followed, past two dwarves carrying large custom-built assault rifles that looked like a hybrid of axe and gun.
"Just keep walking." said Mayathir. "No sudden movements, and don't reach into your pockets, whatever you do."
Jimmy looked at one of the dwarves, who met his glance and let out an animalistic growl. He quickly set his eyes forward again. "There's something to be said about Morian hospitality." he muttered to himself.
They emerged in a large rocky cavern, with makeshift dwellings set into the sides. The ground was littered with garbage, and dirty-looking people of all races were huddled around flaming barrels for warmth.
"Stay close." said Mayathir. "This is where the worst of the pipeweed junkies live, if you can call it living."
Uglakh felt a sickened kind of pity looking at the empty stares of the people living there. He opted instead to look at the ground as he walked.
"I don't get it." said Jimmy. "Hundreds of years ago people smoked pipeweed all the time, especially hobbits, and it never messed them up this badly."
"That was natural pipeweed, not the genetically engineered and concentrated stuff that we have today." answered Mayathir.
A ragged-looking bearded man approached them, jittering with what was obviously pipeweed withdrawal. "Not seen you around here before. New people?"
Mayathir subtly stepped away from him. "Yes. Why do you ask?"
"Heading to Khazad-Dum, are we? Got a vehicle. Get you there fast. 80 dollars for the ride."
Mayathir eased a bit, and immediately switched to a bargaining mode. "I don't know. There's a lot of other transporters around this place, and some of them aren't junkies like you. I don't think I'd go with you at that price."
"Gimme a break man." he said, twitching. "70 dollars, but I ain't going lower."
"You got yourself a deal."
The man led them down a tunnel to another similar cavern, behind one of the houses. There was an ATV with disproportionately large wheels parked there. The man climbed in and spent a couple of minutes deactivating and unlocking several different anti-theft devices before starting up the engine.
"Hop in!" he yelled, grinning to show his crooked yellow teeth.
Ghashburz looked back at the Island of Numenor as he steered the yacht away from it. He looked forward and saw Aiwen lying face-forward on the deck, wearing sunglasses and a string bikini. She was a dazzling sight as always, her long black hair flowing in the breeze. He thought back to the first time he met her, three years ago...
-
Ghashburz sat at one end of a desk, a man with his face hidden in the shadows sitting on the other side.
"Good afternoon. So you are the one they call the dark flame. You have quite a reputation."
"I have been known to offer good services in the past." said Ghashburz.
The man continued. "I am a representative of the Green Dragon gang, and we have a mission for you which we are prepared to offer a substantial sum of money for."
The man pushed a folder on the desk toward him. Out of some strange coincidence of the lighting, the man's face remained in the shadows throughout the movement. Ghashburz opened up the folder and gazed upon the face of a beautiful elf, one who he had never met in person but had heard about.
"Aiwen." he said with a smile. "She's the only assassin in Khazad-Dum with a kill count rivaling my own."
"And she is working for the Rangers, which makes her our enemy. Business for the Green Dragon will proceed much more smoothly when she is terminated. So do we have a deal?"
"It would be an honor."
The next week he spent trying to track down his elusive target, but one day in a dark alley of Khazad-Dum he realized that Aiwen had also been tracking him down. They met at opposite sides of the alley, seeing each other through the steam coming out from a vent of a nearby building. They started walking toward each other slowly.
"How much am I worth to you?" Aiwen said calmly.
"Three hundred thousand cash." answered Ghashburz. "And me?"
"About the same. Let's make this fair. Draw on three."
They continued walking toward each other. Ghashburz's heart rate increased and he could feel the effects of adrenaline working through his system.
"One." said Aiwen.
He started to analyze his situation. Two Stings, sixteen bullets in each, in shoulder holsters, safeties off. Four spare magazines.
"Two." said Ghashburz.
No body armor, very little cover: abandoned car, corner of the building, dumpster.
"Three!" they said together.
Less than twenty feet away from each other, they both simultaneously reached for their weapons, both wielding dual Stings. The next fifteen seconds were a slow-motion blur as they fired at each other, spinning in dance-like movements smoothly between bullets streaming in both directions. They whirled around each other, keeping just outside the lethal sights of each other's guns, the sounds of explosive gunshots and bullet ricochets echoing in their ears until they both met in the center in a whirlwind of pistol smoke. Realizing he was out of ammo, he dropped his guns and quickly pulled out a knife and held it at her neck, stopping when through the wafting smoke he saw that she had a knife poised at his neck at the same time. He could feel the pressure of the steel blade on his neck with every pulse of his racing heart. They stared into each others' eyes, out of breath, for a long minute before Aiwen broke the silence.
"Seems we have a stalemate here. Shall we call it a draw?"
"Sounds good to me. Perhaps I'll kill you another day." he said.
They leaned closer to each other and kissed. They sheathed their knives and walked off in opposite directions.
-
"Ghash, you awake?" asked Aiwen. "You looked a little zoned out there."
"Sorry, I was thinking back to the alley in Khazad-Dum."
"Don't tell me you're going soft and sentimental on me now." Aiwen laughed.
Ghashburz chose not to respond to that. He shut off the yacht's engine and walked toward her on the deck, carrying a laptop computer. He opened it up and opened a cellular internet connection. Almost immediately text appeared on the screen.
WHY DID YOU NOT COMPLETE THE MISSION?
Ghashburz groaned, trying to find the best way to respond. He decided to stretch the truth just a little bit.
THE TARGET'S CONTACTS ARRIVED. THEY HAD US OUTNUMBERED AND THEY HAD AIR SUPPORT
It was technically true. There were three of them, but only one was armed, and the guy had to be at least 70 years old, but their employer didn't need to know that. He waited a painfully long time for a response.
WAS ONE OF THE CONTACTS AN ELDERLY MAN WITH A LONG BEARD?
"How did he know?" said Aiwen.
Ghashburz shrugged.
YES
UNDERSTANDABLE. YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO KILL HIM. HE IS BEYOND YOUR SKILLS.
Ghashburz raised an eyebrow at the message.
I DON'T UNDERSTAND
YOU DON'T NEED TO. NOW, THE PAYMENT: ALTHOUGH YOU FAILED, I WILL WIRE YOU HALF THE PROMISED AMOUNT.
"Shit! I wanted the whole thing!" whined Aiwen.
"Just be glad he didn't decide to leave us with nothing." said Ghashburz.
THANK YOU, SIR
A window opened up, showing the progress of the financial transaction.
I HAVE ONE MORE MISSION FOR YOU TWO. THIS WILL BE VERY DIFFICULT, SO YOU WILL BE REWARDED TWO MILLION EACH ON SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.
That got Ghashburz's pulse racing for a moment.
DETAILS?
NOT OVER THIS CONNECTION. RETURN TO KHAZAD-DUM IMMEDIATELY. WE WILL BRIEF YOU AND PROVIDE THE NECESSARY TOOLS.
The computer beeped as the transaction was completed, and Ghashburz closed the connection.
"We're going back to Khazad-Dum." said Aiwen. "Isn't it romantic?"
Ghashburz wrapped his arms around her.
-
Jimmy looked up at the sheer rock face, looming oppressively over him.
"The walls of Moria." said Mayathir, bringing the motorcycle to a stop.
"I feel like I just jumped into the pages of Lord of the Rings." said Jimmy. "There's the lake. Better not disturb the water, if I remember correctly."
"Good idea. Drug smugglers have been known to mysteriously disappear around this area. Maybe that octopus thing in the lake is just a myth but I'm not going to test the theory."
Mayathir dismounted, and started to run his hands along the wall. "Should be around here somewhere..." he slipped his right hand into a crack, and moved down. He stopped and smiled. He pushed something in the crack and there was a rumbling sound. Slowly, a portion of the wall moved forward and slid to the side, revealing a small cave. Uglakh gulped. He had heard rumours of Moria before, but never imagined that he would actually see it. Mayathir motioned to Jimmy and Uglakh to follow him in. He walked forward cautiously, his right hand poised over one of his crossbows. It was a small cave with a metal door set into the stone at the end. Mayathir stepped to the door and knocked. A section of stone next to the door opened up, revealing a large gun on a turret, facing him. Behind the turret was a small window, and he could see the face of a dwarf looking at him, a large scar running down diagonally from his forehead.
"Stop right there." said the dwarf through an intercom. "Say the password. You have three seconds.
"Mellon." answered Mayathir.
The rock slid back into place in front of the gun turret, and the door opened.
"How he know this stuff?" Uglakh whispered to Jimmy.
Jimmy didn't answer. Mayathir walked through the door and they followed, past two dwarves carrying large custom-built assault rifles that looked like a hybrid of axe and gun.
"Just keep walking." said Mayathir. "No sudden movements, and don't reach into your pockets, whatever you do."
Jimmy looked at one of the dwarves, who met his glance and let out an animalistic growl. He quickly set his eyes forward again. "There's something to be said about Morian hospitality." he muttered to himself.
They emerged in a large rocky cavern, with makeshift dwellings set into the sides. The ground was littered with garbage, and dirty-looking people of all races were huddled around flaming barrels for warmth.
"Stay close." said Mayathir. "This is where the worst of the pipeweed junkies live, if you can call it living."
Uglakh felt a sickened kind of pity looking at the empty stares of the people living there. He opted instead to look at the ground as he walked.
"I don't get it." said Jimmy. "Hundreds of years ago people smoked pipeweed all the time, especially hobbits, and it never messed them up this badly."
"That was natural pipeweed, not the genetically engineered and concentrated stuff that we have today." answered Mayathir.
A ragged-looking bearded man approached them, jittering with what was obviously pipeweed withdrawal. "Not seen you around here before. New people?"
Mayathir subtly stepped away from him. "Yes. Why do you ask?"
"Heading to Khazad-Dum, are we? Got a vehicle. Get you there fast. 80 dollars for the ride."
Mayathir eased a bit, and immediately switched to a bargaining mode. "I don't know. There's a lot of other transporters around this place, and some of them aren't junkies like you. I don't think I'd go with you at that price."
"Gimme a break man." he said, twitching. "70 dollars, but I ain't going lower."
"You got yourself a deal."
The man led them down a tunnel to another similar cavern, behind one of the houses. There was an ATV with disproportionately large wheels parked there. The man climbed in and spent a couple of minutes deactivating and unlocking several different anti-theft devices before starting up the engine.
"Hop in!" he yelled, grinning to show his crooked yellow teeth.