UPDATE: Chapter 169 has now been posted. If you haven't read 169 yet, please do so. It explains a bunch of stuff that might have been confusing.
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IMPOTANT NOTE: I uploaded chapter 170 instead of 169. Because I'm dumb. Once I get home and have access to my writing laptop again I will upload the correct one. If you don't want to read this out of order, please wait until ~4 Pacific time. I will, of course, still leave this one up.
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Thanks for reading and reviewing! Sorry for not answering, NaNoWriMo is taking up all of my writing brain right now. It's going really well, though. I hit 29k last night! Just 21k more to go!
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Chapter 170: Burn
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Issitoq felt the contract burn like it was his own skin, and not ancient stone.
It was burning. The act of breaking it released enough metaphysical power to have a very physical effect.
The Observants had written the contract to be as one-sided as they could manage, considering how powerful, brilliant, and insane as Clockwork had been at the time. They had not included any penalties for themselves should the contract be broken on their end, except for the ending of the contract itself, and, with it, all the benefits they derived from it.
Issitoq found that was more than enough. It was like going blind, after having perfect vision.
He had forgotten how much of the Observants' powers derived from Clockwork's.
The contract chamber was crowded when he got there, and he had no recollection of deciding to go. One moment, he was recognizing the horror of what had just happened, the next, he was there, in the chamber.
The contract was kept in a public area, but under heavy guard. True, the physical, stone contract was all but meaningless, in terms of the contract actually being enforced, but it was useful for other reasons. Reminding the rare visitor to the Panopticon who was in charge, for example, or humiliating Clockwork.
The flames licking at the contract died away as Issitoq watched, leaving the stone no worse for wear. Issitoq sagged in relief. Other Observants in the room were wailing. Some were weeping, giant, fat tears falling from their eyes. One moaned that this was the end of the Observants.
"Quiet!" shouted Issitoq, sharply. He was soothed, somewhat, to see that his orders were followed promptly. "This isn't the end! Clockwork has only," only, he said, as if this weren't a disaster, "managed to drive himself mad. He's like a toddler, throwing a tantrum because we took away his favorite toy. We will go to Long Now, and cure him, as we have done before," once before, and when he had begged them to do so, "and all will be as it has been."
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A young woman in a dress that instantly put Sam in mind of pilgrims floated from Youngblood's ship to the Elysian ship. She landed lightly on the deck, and curtsied. Her eyes were almost human, but there was no distinction between her iris and her pupils. They were both entirely black. Her skin was oddly pink.
"Hello," she said, "I'm Baneberry Ergotsdaughter of the advocacy firm of Ergot and Daughters. I'm representing a Miss Star Thunder, of Amity Park. I believe she's on board?"
"And if she is?" asked the ship's captain.
"Then I am the first to find you, and my firm's missing clients," said Baneberry, "and that I didn't charter this ship for nothing." She gestured behind her. "There aren't a lot of people who will sail out here. It's too close to the Grinder, apparently."
"What did you pay Youngblood with?" asked Sam, curiously.
"She paid me with bedtime stories for the brat," said Ember, touching down next to Baneberry. "She can't see him. I have to babysit him, anyway. Hey goth girl, geek."
Sam was fairly certain that Ember had to do nothing of the sort. It wasn't like there was anyone out there to make her babysit Youngblood.
"Hi, Ember," said Sam. "Where's Youngblood now?"
"Oh, back there, somewhere. He's halfway decided that he wants to be a witch next."
Baneberry's smile looked forced. "He shouldn't," she said.
"Anyway," said Ember, "we're going to take you all back to Elysium, and then on to Libra."
"Ah, not quite that quickly, I think," said Baneberry. "I don't think they've quite finished building the facilities for the humans yet. But soon, definitely." She nodded decisively. "Now, I really must see my client. If you would?" She nodded at a nearby hatch.
"We'll send someone down to get her," said the captain.
"Please do."
"Hey," said Ember, "so where's the dipstick? I thought he'd be out here, acting all protective in case we decided to attack or whatever."
"You've done that before," said Sam.
"Yeah, sure, I didn't mean that it was a bad thing, or whatever. But where is he? He didn't get himself beat up again, did he?"
To Sam's right, Tucker failed to stifle a snort.
"Ancients," said Ember. "Well, I didn't get him a 'get well' card this time, so he's gonna have to suck it up. You know, his guy, that Hemlock dude, is really freaking out."
"Yeah, I can imagine. But he isn't here."
"Well, yeah, he's not here. Youngblood and I were only going to take one advocate aboard, and it wasn't going to be some weirdo old guy."
"She means that Danny isn't here," said Tucker. "He got seriously hurt, and Pandora, Ellie and some others took him on to Mattingly."
"Mattingly? Where's that?"
"It's where Dora's from," said Sam.
"Oh, yeah. That's pretty out of the way from here, isn't it? Why there?"
Sam and Tucker shrugged.
Ember rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, I get it, not my business. Whatever. Let's get a march on, and get everyone over."
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Danny hadn't figured out a better way to get rid of the weapons.
It wasn't that he hadn't been trying, but all he could come up with was variations on 'throw it really hard into the void of the Ghost Zone and hope Inanna doesn't notice.' That wasn't a plan. That was an absence of a plan, especially since if (when) Inanna did see one of the weapons sailing away through green-tinted space, she'd lose whatever little trust she had in Danny, and Danny would lose his one advantage in this situation.
In his defense, Danny had been distracted.
The primary distraction was the crown phased into his torso. It wasn't hot, like the Amulet of Mattingly had been, and it didn't really hurt, but it was... It was... Danny had a hard time describing it. It definitely had a flavor, just not a real one, not something humans would recognize, not something they could recognize. For some reason, it made Danny think that the crown had something to do with portals.
The other distraction was Inanna complaining about losing the crown, how it was going to be difficult for her to get back, and the disloyalty of people who had no reason to be loyal to her in the first place. It was annoying. It was more annoying because it was all in Sumerian, which wasn't Danny's best language, so he had to pay close attention so he could nod in appropriate places and answer her rhetorical questions. He had a feeling that screwing up and saying 'yes' when she wanted a 'no,' or vice versa, would be unpleasant.
So, when they got to the blue gate, Danny had no choice but to shove whatever he grabbed next into himself as well. He really hoped it wouldn't react badly with the crown.
The blue gate looked much like the violet one, except the stone in its arch was blue, not purple, and someone had made an abortive attempt at painting it with blue daub. Inanna curled her lip at it.
"No keeper for this gate?"
"No, great lady. I am the only one who tends these gates."
"Hm. You first."
Danny nodded. "Yes, great lady."
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Danny had to phase the blue beads off of Inanna's neck before he phased them into himself. It was tricky, but not impossible.
That done, he hovered at Inanna's elbow, hoping she wouldn't notice how Danny was radiating energy. Or how he once again came out of the portal after her.
Maybe he wasn't as conspicuous as he thought..?
Inanna inhaled sharply when she noticed her beads were missing, her hands feeling all over her neck, and her eyes casting around wildly. She seemed much more upset about losing the beads than losing the crown. Maybe it was because it was the second weapon she had lost, maybe it was because of what the beads did.
Because Danny was now entirely sure the blue beads were what had given Inanna the bulk of her mind-control powers. Because that was 'had,' past tense. Now that they were in Danny, they weren't working anymore.
"Gatekeeper," said Inanna, sharply, more sharply than before. "How often is it that your gates steal things from your betters?"
"I- Not often, not often, great lady. I do swear. But not many come through them, and I am not in command of what they do, great lady, please. It is sheerest chance. Surely, you have traveled far and wide, and know how portals are. They are like goats, great lady, always doing as they please."
Inanna's gaze was suspicious. "Should you betray me, gatekeeper, I shall ensure that you will wish that I merely destroyed you."
Yes, Inanna was very aware that she had lost her ability to control others. She thought she had lost her ability to control Danny, but she had never had it. She was overcompensating with threats.
The threats were more than enough. Danny shrunk away from her, every line of his body screaming, don't kill me.
"Where is the next portal?"
Left, whispered Ereshikigal, and up.
"There," said Danny, pointing, not bothering to find the gate with his own eyes, blindly trusting the Core's directions.
Inanna glared regally in that direction. "I see it," she announced. "Lead on."
Danny nodded, and started off.
More to the left, little gatekeeper.
Danny adjusted his course. They were flying towards the Core, he noticed, and the air was starting to feel sharp on his skin, the not-gravity of the Core tugging on his component ectoplasm.
Hush, now, you are not nearly close enough for that.
What about the lion?!
Already fading, and more than happy to have his core join me, here, at the center of all things. He despised Inanna, and wished for his end to inconvenience her, if he could do nothing else.
Well, that was somewhat comforting. Still, he wasn't ready to abandon his individuality for cosmic oneness, he liked being himself, and people would miss him.
Something like a curious hum curled around the edges of his mind, and Danny had the feeling that the Core was looking through his thoughts and memories. He hoped she didn't think he was crazy.
Not at all, little love. But you had best keep an eye on the witch-queen. She does hate being ignored.
Danny turned to look at Inanna, apprehensive. She hadn't seemed to notice his inattention. Yet.
He hoped the Ancients were on their way. He wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. He had already been in a bad way before being thrown into the past, what with Dan... and recovering from the amulet... and the Tower... and everything else.
Brave little Neti. You have endured much, but stay steady. We watch you, always, but we must be silent now, reach farther...
The presence in the back of his mind faded.
Well, heck. Hecking heck.
Danny looked back over his shoulder, at Inanna, and smiled nervously. She'd stopped talking. "It isn't much farther to the next gate, great lady."
"I have eyes."
Danny swallowed, and fixed his gaze forward again. Oh, this was scary. He wanted to go home. He wanted to be far, far away from this woman. He wanted to pull her weapons out of himself. He wanted his friends. He wanted Clockwork. He wanted his sister. He wanted his parents. He wanted his lair. He wanted Amity Park. He wanted to cry. Not necessarily in that order.
It wasn't that he didn't want to save the world. Again. He wanted the world to be safe. He needed the world to be safe. It had all his favorite people in it. He just would like it if someone else saved it for once. He needed a break. It just wasn't fair, that, after everything else, he had to get sucked into the past to deal with an issue thousands of years old. It could have waited! Time travel was involved!
The cyan gate was approaching. Rather, they were approaching the cyan gate. It was really the same, in the Zone, excepting air resistance.
Danny licked his lips. Was it this gate or the next that had an actual toll? Or both?
He should have asked Lady Ereshkigal when he had the chance.
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Good news! It wasn't the cyan gate, and Danny had been able to snag the other necklace and stuff it into his rapidly-filling chest. He wasn't sure how he'd take care of, say, the breastplate, but that was a problem, for, well, later. Hopefully.
Bad news, it turned out that Ereshkigal had 'stepped away' so she could call up an army.
Or was it good news? It would distract Inanna, and slow her down, it was doing so already, as she surveyed the little army down her nose. But that little army would be dust and more dust by the time Inanna was through with them. Well. Scattered ectoplasm and more ectoplasm.
Their afterlives would be over, in any case.
Danny twitched, an aborted reflex to stop this from happening.
But happen it must, gatekeeper, said the Core, coldly. We need more time. Do not interfere. Stay back. Stay safe. You are important, here.
The words sat heavy in Danny's mind. He wanted to stop this.
More will perish if you do. They have chosen this. They know they will come to their ends. Let them make their choices.
Danny looked up. Bright banners snapped and flared, pinks and pale blues. A woman with deep lines in her green face and mist-woven hair sat on a clouded leopard. Two younger-looking ghosts stood to either side of her, mounted on scaled and winged horses. One of them carried an abacus. Behind them, was a forest of spears, held by ghosts not quite so clearly defined. Danny thought he spotted bows and arrows behind the spears, but he wasn't sure.
Bilulu, her sons, and the other people of the Counted Desert.
Danny thought he might have heard of Bilulu, somewhere, but definitely not the 'Counted Desert.' He supposed he shouldn't be surprised.
The Core prodded him back, and he pressed against the solid brick side of the gate, then crept around so he was behind it, with it between him and the incipient fight.
The army let out a scream. Bright green ectoblasts converged on Inanna from the army, followed by a rain of arrows.
Both parted around Inanna, like a river around a stone.
She gestured with her left hand, the one with the bracelet, and yellow-red fire streamed from her fingertips. She raised her rod, and a constant ghost ray shot from its tip, followed by wreathes of lightning. She looked almost bored.
Then she began to advance.
