Steel, Fire, Honor and Ruin
Chapter 23
definitely not just another night
Part 1
/ooooooo\
Location: Nuln, city-state of the Empire
Day 73 and 3/4s
Antonio Valantina was a big fat jerk.
Inside Nuln's wealthy Kaufmann District was a big white marble building so large that it occupied a whole block of the city by itself. It didn't have a fanciful name and was simply known as Nuln's Opera House. Built several centuries ago out of the same marble Wissenland was known for mining out of the Grey Mountains, the structure was a work of art. The outside was lined with towering columns, stone gargoyles on the peaks of the roof. The inside was immaculate. Velvet covered seats, painted murals covering the walls and ceiling, and a huge silver, gas-powered, branching chandelier hung down over the audience.
Maria Shepard stood on the stage, front and center, with her arms crossed and foot tapping, the echo of it filling the empty acoustically designed interior. The big fat jerk and three of his men stood slightly behind her, while Huyderman's eight guys lingered menacingly around the edges of the stage.
Antonio stepped forward to join her.
"Huyderman is going to be here any minute," he said in a low voice. "Please tell me you'll lose the attitude before he arrives."
Maria looked over her shoulder at him with narrowed eyes. Big fat jerk? Valantina just graduated to full blown asshole.
"You just happened to have fifteen hundred gold crowns laying around the inn?" she said inferring the chest sitting on the stage behind them. She shook her head. "I can't believe you Antonio."
"I'm not going to apologize Shepard."
"I was bleeding out in your stables and the first thing you did was riffle through my pockets to take the few coins I owned, when you had fifteen hundred stashed three feet away in a dust covered chest."
He barely looked fazed. "That money happens to be my emergency fund." Then he shrugged. "Or sometimes it pays for a vacation or two. Raine likes to get back to Tilea now and again. Trip like that isn't cheap. I only travel in style."
"I was dying on your doorstep…" Maria stressed, "and you literally took everything I owned."
He shrugged again. "Cost of business, what can I say? Considering you're still breathing I really don't know what you're complaining about. How many pockets have you riffled through since your leg healed?"
Maria methodically pushed down the urge to rip a velvet cushion off the nearest seat and smother him with it. Big fat jerk/asshole. As soon as this business with Huyderman was over and done with, she was going to take another look at the valuables stashed behind the stables. He owed her for this anyways. Maybe she'd swipe another bottle of wine? Something to think about.
Maria and Antonio walked back to join Paul, as well as the two newcomers Valantina had introduced to her just before leaving the inn. Their names were Emil and Donato. Both were big, mean, and bulging with muscle. They looked like human shaped Krogan. She was also pretty sure their faces were permanently stuck in an angry scowl. In all honestly, they could have been twins, if it weren't for the fact Emil was entirely bald, while Donato had a full head of brown hair pulled back into a short tight ponytail.
In total the five of them were going to have to take on Huyderman and however many men he decided were necessary to try and kill Valantina as they attempted to negotiate the release of Thade Othmar's wife and daughter. This included the eight guys already inside the opera house with them.
Apparently Huyderman owned a portion of the opera house and decided to use the big empty space to conduct this clandestine and illegal transaction. The irony wasn't lost on Maria. How big was Huyderman's ego that he picked a stage of all places to kill Antonio? Probably frickin' huge but Maria was already looking forward to it. She had been steadily tapping into the winds of magic ever since she walked into the opera house, and while the magic wasn't particularly strong tonight, she could feel and see the power as it swept through the building.
So what if she couldn't do much with it yet? The visual alone of her standing here with shadows wrapping around her shoulders should be enough to scare the likes of Huyderman and his gang.
With a loud slightly ominous groaning the front doors to the opera house were pulled open. Maria watched the group of men march into the building and down the narrow aisles of seats to reach the stage.
She held back a frown as she counted heads. Huyderman was in the group, but he brought another sixteen guys with him. Geez, compensating much? How many did he think he needed to kill Valantina?
From what Antonio had told her, Johan Huyderman was born into the biggest crime family in Nuln and took over after his father passed away. He had been ruthless, brilliant, and charismatic, quickly eclipsing what his parents had accomplished. Huyderman was also the type to throw himself into his work, quite literally. Over six feet tall and all of it muscle, the man knew how to brawl, and more importantly how to end a fight. He had a reputation for never blinking or backing down.
But that was years ago. Now in his mid-fifties Huyderman had taken a step back. Enjoying the fruits of his labors as it were. He was wealthy, well known, and had connections all over the city. Nowadays mention of his name alone was enough to get things done.
Maria spotted him out in front as he led his men toward the stage. He was still tall but had grown a sizable gut. Probably from eating out at fancy restaurants every night. After his gut, the next thing she noticed was his muttonchops. Those big, bushy, muttonchops. A light touch of grey powdered the edges of his hair, both on his face and head.
Still, despite the odd facial hair and growing belly, Maria had to admit he looked good. Must have been a handsome man in his prime. He climbed the stairs to the stage with a hop in his step and not a worry showing in the smile on his face. The eight men who had been waiting with them on stage moved to stand behind her group as Huyderman approached. A not so subtle way of cutting off all escape. Those men didn't worry Maria. They were Paul, Emil, and Donato's problem.
What did worry her was the strange way the winds of magic buckled and jerked in the air as Huyderman marched through the opera house. She was having trouble keeping her grip on the winds.
"Antonio!" Huyderman called out cheerfully now that he and all his men were on stage with them. "Good to see you man! Glad you could tear yourself away from that inn of yours to meet me face to face."
"Happy to be here Johan," Antonio replied, with nowhere near as much cheer as his counterpart. "I've got the ransom for Thade's family. Fifteen hundred crowns, just as you asked." He looked around the now crowded stage. "I'd like to put this matter to rest before things get out of hand."
Huyderman kept walking until he stood only about ten feet from both her and Antonio. Maria was now struggling just to hold onto the magic she had painstakingly gathered up. For whatever reason all the power was slipping through her grasp. The opera house was nearly devoid of magic.
How was that even possible?
Huyderman nodded. "I'd like nothing more than to put this matter to rest. So let's look at that chest you've kindly brought along." He waved a hand, then two of his guys came forward and picked up the chest that had been sitting at Emil and Donato's feet. When they brought it over to Huyderman they popped it open and took out one of the many leather pouches inside. Huyderman thumbed through the gold coins. He looked impressed. "I didn't know you and Thade were so close. Willing to drop so much gold on a moments notice to help him out?" Huyderman dropped the pouch back into the chest and his boys moved it back and out of the way.
He then directed a smile at Maria as he seemingly noticed her for the first time.
"And who's this lovely woman at your side tonight, Antonio?" He grinned. "Don't think we've ever had the pleasure." Huyderman stepped forward with a hand outstretched. "Nice to meet you miss…?"
Maria had to look up at him as she took his hand and opened her mouth to reply, but instead all she could do was gasp as her connection to the winds of magic was instantly severed. He kept a firm grip on her hand as his grin transformed to a cocky smirk. "I was just being polite. I know exactly who you are miss Shepard. Your exploits in helping Antonio kill off Sansovino did not go unnoticed. I bribed a few of the mercenaries you let live when you burned down the man's warehouse."
That seemed to be some sort of cue as all of Huyderman's twenty-four men pulled out swords, daggers, and pistols. Paul, Emil, and Donato did the same, but they were hopelessly outnumbered.
"A rogue mage might scare some people off, but not me," Huyderman continued with a level of smugness that would have made even the Citadel Council look like amateurs. He gave her hand a squeeze that nearly had Maria wincing, then let her go. He turned and walked back to the safety of his men.
Maria's mind raced. Somehow this two-bit criminal found a way to cut her off from the winds of magic. There went her plan to scare him senseless. He really must have been something back in his prime.
Huyderman faced them once again. "Miss Shepard, I'm going to give you this one chance. Antonio is done. You don't have to die with him." He spread his hands with a grin. "It's time for a career change. I promise I pay much more than he ever did."
So, no magic. Disappointing and slightly alarming, but she wasn't a one trick pony. Huyderman had no idea who he was talking to. Maria moved to put herself between Huyderman's men and Antonio's.
"Okay, Huyderman, you got me. I was the one who helped Antonio take down Sansovino. But we only killed his men in self-defense. I'm going to give you the same chance. Stand down. Take the gold. Release Thade Othmar's wife and daughter. And live to fight another day."
Huyderman had a wicked grin. "Not a chance."
Maria grinned back. "I knew you'd say that. I just had to make the offer."
In a smooth motion Maria pulled out her sword and rolled her shoulders as the holographic plates of tech-armor came alight across her body. Without another word Maria thrust out her left hand and sent all seventeen men standing in front of her flying back across the stage with a biotic push. Commendably most got back to their feet in a flash. Two of them managed to shoot her square in the chest, but of course the primitive firearms failed to penetrate her shields. Maria could hear blades clashing behind her, but she had her hands full with the current group and couldn't worry about Antonio and his men.
Huyderman struggled back to his feet as well and sent his guys on the attack. Suddenly Maria had plenty of swords heading for her gut. She knocked as many as she could away with her sword and then shocked two standing to close to one another with an overload burst. Another sword slashed her leg but only sparked against her tech armor. It gave her enough of an opening to stab at him with her own blade. The sharp tip of her side sword slid between his ribs and right out his back. He immediately slumped over as Maria skipped to the side and spun to slip her sword free of his chest and slash the throat of the next man standing to close.
Another biotic push sent four men sliding back across the stage right before Maria grabbed another two in a biotic grip and flung them out across the rows of velvet covered seats. She barely had time to collect herself before another three men jumped forward and began hacking away at her. Maria scrambled even as she shocked another man to the ground. She parried a thrust from the man on her left then froze his head solid with a cryo-blast. The man on the right hesitated a second to long which allowed Maria to easily slid her sword into his stomach and scramble his guts. A quick scan of the stage was ended abruptly as another pistol went off and ricocheted off her shoulder. Maria spotted Huyderman standing tall as he dropped the spent pistol and pulled out his own sword.
Cute. But she didn't have any time to waste. With a flare of biotic power Maria yanked him forward to land in a heap directly at her feet. Before he could gather himself Huyderman froze as her blade pressed against his throat.
"Alright, that's enough!" Maria's shout filled the opera house, drowning out the fierce fighting. Confident Huyderman would stay put, Maria quickly looked around for Antonio and his men.
Antonio stood only a few feet to her left, sword in hand and two bodies at his feet. Paul, Emil, and Donato were also thankfully all still standing, though Emil's hand was wrapped around his left side. Maria could see the trickle of blood running through his fingers. They'd need to get him medical attention as soon as possible.
"Hey! Hey!" Maria pointed a glowing hand at the few men who looked ready to tackle her in order to save their boss. She flared her biotics brightly and that seemed to be enough to cow them into submission. "Here's how this is going to go," she declared, looking around to meet the eyes of all the people still standing. fourteen in total. "There's a chest with fifteen hundred gold crowns still sitting on this stage. It's yours, if you leave right now and don't look back."
Huyderman laughed. "Nice try witch, but my men are more loyal than that!"
Maria sighed. Here we go with the witch business again… Was that really a thing in the Empire? Wrinkled old women flying around on broomsticks cackling at the top of their lungs? She kicked the sword out of his hands, and with a small exertion of biotic power lifted the man to his feet. Then lifted him even higher, until he hung suspended twenty feet above their heads. At this point she had the attention of everyone on the stage.
So that's when she let him go.
As satisfying as it would have been to let him bounce on the stage, Maria caught Huyderman with her biotics right before he went splat about a foot off the ground.
That's when she dropped him. She had to have a little fun.
"Okay, one more time." Maria shut down her tech-armor and slid her sword back into the sheath on her belt. "Either you leave now – with the gold – or I flay you all alive… with my mind."
Oh yeah. Just as chilling as when Liara had said it back on Illium.
It only took two of the men rushing for the chest before the rest all joined in and hurriedly carried the gold off the stage. Despite Huyderman's threats the group hurried up the aisles and back up to the front the door. And as soon as the large doors creaked opened Maria heard a flurry of pistols go off. Sounded like a few of the men didn't want to share the gold. That was the gang loyalty she knew so well.
Maria calmly watched as Huyderman climbed back to his feet. The man was the picture definition of outraged. She could hardly blame him. His world had been turned upside down and inside out in just one night. He had nowhere to run, and she bet he knew it.
"Huyderman…" Antonio stood beside Maria and she noted he still held his sword. "This is the end. Tell me where you're keeping the family."
Huyderman spun around. "Go to hell Valantina! I got the family, I still got leverage!" He faced Maria. "You want Thade Othmar's family back? Then use that devil-cursed magic of yours and kill Antonio! Right here! Right Now!"
Maria's eyebrows rose at his outburst. She glanced over at Antonio then looked back at the enraged crime boss. And then she pulled her phalanx heavy pistol from the bag on her belt and pointed it at his boot.
Bang! Bye, bye big toe.
Huyderman fell to the floor with a shout as he gripped his right boot and the four remaining toes still inside.
"Speaking of magic," Maria said trying to be heard over Huyderman's shouts of pain, "how are you cutting me off from the winds?" Huyderman was still rocking back and forth on the stage, shouting and cursing his lungs out. Maria gave him a few more seconds before she pumped another round into the stage only an inch from his uninjured left boot.
That shut him up pretty quick.
"Magic, Huyderman," she prompted again. "Tell me how."
"Fine, fine!" He rifled through his shirt until he pulled out a disk attached to a chain hanging around his neck. He snapped the thin chain, then held the disk out for her to take.
"What is this?" she asked looking over the trinket. Or jewel maybe. The center was white, looked like a pearl, and it was imbedded into a disk of silver that had weird swirls and designs carved into it. The entirety of it fit inside her palm, and one good look told her instantly that this little piece of jewelry was what was cutting her off from the winds of magic.
"An amulet that was supposed to protect me from a wizard's powers," Huyderman growled as he gripped his bleeding boot. "Bought it years ago from a retired witch hunter. Worked every other time I needed it. Who the hell are you anyways!? There's no way a normal wizard should have been able to break through the enchantment!"
As pretty as it was, Maria sent a concentrated burst of biotic power through her hand and crushed the amulet to powder. As soon as it was destroyed, she felt the winds of magic flow back through the opera house. She was glad to know her newfound connection to this world was back. Somehow in such a short time it had become just as important to her as her biotics.
"Well," Maria brushed her hand clean, "that takes care of that. But now you're going to tell us where the family is."
"Like hell I am!" Huyderman shouted.
Maria kneeled so she was eye level with him. "This is your one chance. Tell me where the family is." Huyderman just continued to glare at her so Maria pressed her pistol against his boot. "You've got nine toes left and I've got nowhere to be tonight. Don't make this difficult."
"You don't have all night," Huyderman sneered. "If I don't give the word, by dawn my men have orders to kill the wife and daughter." He struggled to sit up as high as he could. "I told you how you get them back. It's Antonio's life, or theirs. Your choice."
Maria jumped back to her feet as someone stumbled out onto the stage from behind one of the heavy roped back curtains. The plump round man who had just arrived wasn't a threat however as he doubled over with his hands on his knees as he gasped for breath.
"Mr. Valantina!" It was Ralph, the same man who had originally tracked her down the first time she was in Nuln and hiding out as a with hunter, and he was doing his best to straighten up and hurry over. "Boss – I found them! The family! Thade Othmar's family! The wife and daughter! I know where they are being held!"
Antonio held up a hand to stop Ralph before he keeled over from lack of oxygen.
"You certain Ralph?" Antonio fixed him with a hard stare. "You know where they are?"
Ralph nodded vigorously and drew himself up proudly. "I know where they are boss."
Antonio looked over at Maria. And she swiveled around with her pistol pointed down at Huyderman's head.
"Wait! I –"
Bang!
/ooooooo\
Maria and Antonio walked together down the dark street. To their left was the imposing stone wall that separated Nuln's vital foundries from the soot covered, and unwanted buildings on their right. It wasn't the city's poorest district, but if it was their choice, no one wanted to live or conduct business under the dark smelly clouds that continually billowed out from the neighboring smokestacks. Behind them, parked just a block away to be exact, was their carriage. And a ways still in front of them was a rundown two-story building that was somehow important enough to have a pair of city-watchmen standing guard outside.
Antonio let out a sigh. "I don't know whether to be impressed or deeply unsettled that Huyderman was able to sway so many city guards to his side."
Maria offered him a shrug. "Money talks. That's something that will never change. Everyone has their price."
"Really? What's yours?"
"Three square meals, plus snacks, a day." She smiled at him. "Keep that in mind if you want to continue making use of my amazing skills. Oh! And orange juice. Keep letting me have orange juice."
"Fine, just start pitching in when I order another shipment from Tilea." Antonio looked her up and down as they continued walking. "I wanted to ask… what are you wearing?"
"You like it? It's called a turtleneck. I stopped by Mancini and invented it for the Empire. You're welcome by the way. Buy a few for Paul and the rest of your men. They'll thank you when winter comes."
He scoffed. "I spend enough coin as it is keeping my guys happy. I think Raine could use one though. Perhaps a softer color, of course."
Maria laughed lightly. It was good to know Antonio kept his wife happy. And as much as Maria would have enjoyed running around in a bright pink turtleneck, she was one-hundred percent certain her graduating N7 class would instantly know it, hunt her down, and beat her senseless, regardless if she was marooned on this world or not.
So, for now, she'd be sticking with the dark red.
The two city watchmen leaning against the building directly ahead finally took notice of their approach and straightened up, hands dropping to the hilts of their swords. It was becoming increasingly obvious she and Antonio were heading right for them. Maria watched one of the guys point their way and say something to his buddy, who nodded back. If they worked for Huyderman than it was safe to say they probably recognized his main rival.
"You going to claim to be a Battle Wizard?" Antonio asked her quietly as they reached the two guards.
She nodded. "Seems to be a more believable story than witch hunter. And I can do magic."
"Two months ago you could barely say two words," Antonio said with another little sigh, "and here you are pissing off vampires and learning how to manipulate the winds. If I haven't said it before, thank you for choosing to stay at my inn."
She was fifty-fifty on whether he was seriously thanking her or not. But any witty reply on her part was going to have to wait as they finally reached their destination. And the two guards who were quick to stop them.
"Hold up Antonio," the one with the well-oiled mustache declared, stepping off the structure's small front landing. "What do you think yer doing here, huh? Keep on walking and let's avoid ourselves a bit of trouble."
Maria looked the two men over. Chest plates, armored gauntlets, swords on their hips and shields slung over their backs. No firearms. Even if they had, they weren't a match for her on their best day.
Still, let's not go busting heads unless absolutely forced to.
Antonio waved the man's threat off. "I'm here and Huyderman isn't. And I know you've got Thade Othmar's family locked away behind you. Just give me the wife and daughter and I'll be on my merry way."
Mustache guy's brow creased. "You know how much gold I'd be swimming in if I slid my sword through your gut right now? Get walking before Huyderman or his boys show up."
This is where Maria came in and she coughed softly to get their attention. "Hello. We haven't been introduced." She smiled politely at the two guards. "My name is Maria Shepard. I am a battle wizard of the Empire and a personal friend of the Valantina family. Less than an hour ago I killed Johan Huyderman." With a slight exertion of biotic power she set the surrounding street a glow with a faint blue hue. Mustache guy's face went bloodless as his pal behind him stepped back, his shield bumping loudly into the wall behind him.
"Are the wife and daughter still in the building?" she asked them.
Mustache guy nodded quickly.
"And are they alive?" she asked next, the street brightening up with another small flare of biotic power.
He swallowed heavily. "Y-yes ma'am."
Maria frowned at his reaction. "Unharmed?"
Mustache guy began to shake in his armor. Maria took a single step toward the man and he stumbled back, raising his hands up.
"T-the mother got a little beat up. Black eye, cut lip," he quickly admitted, sweat visible on his forehead. "It wasn't us! I swear to you! Huyderman's boys did it! They locked 'em down in the cellar and gave us the key. I only opened the door to get them some dinner! We never touched a hair on their heads!"
He seemed properly terrified of her. Maybe he had firsthand experience with the Empire's wizards. In any event, Maria believed him. He may have been a crooked cop, but he seemed at least above physically harming a mother and daughter.
"Anybody else in the building?" she asked. "Is it just the two of you?"
"Yes ma'am," mustache guy nodded.
Maria rolled her eyes. "Yes to what?"
"It's just the two of us."
"Good." She gestured to Antonio. "Toss him the key and let him pass. The three of us will wait patiently until they come back out."
Half an hour later Maria found herself back at the Laughing Bear Inn. She was leaning in the doorway to the lounge with a smile on her face as she watched Thade Othmar happily embrace his rescued wife and daughter. The three of them were laughing and crying and it made Maria feel all warm and fuzzy inside knowing she helped bring them back together.
The last few weeks had been tough. The last few months even tougher. Maria still had no idea where she was in the galaxy, but at least even if she was marooned here, she could do some good now and then.
Antonio walked over from the bar and held a glass filled with a few fingers of a dark brown liquid out for her. Maria thanked him then took a sniff of the glass.
"What's this?" It smelled like wood and ash. And was that cinnamon? Some fruit in there too. She took a sip and a cornucopia of flavor slid over her tongue and down her throat. "Oh my god, that is good." Maria looked back up at Antonio. "What is it? And more importantly, do you have more?"
He chuckled lightly. "It's brandy, from the city of Kemperbad. Their finest batch. And yes, I have more. Feel free to have another glass. This stuff is expensive but nowhere near as much as those oranges I import."
"I will take you up on that." She clinked her glass with his and enjoyed another sip. That 1608 Bordeleaux red wine everyone bragged about had nothing on this barrel aged brandy. "How is Emil? Is he going to be okay?"
"He lost a lot of blood," Antonio admitted with a grimace. "But he should make a full recovery thanks to a certain doctor's assistance."
"Good to hear." Maria took another sip of her brandy as she watched the happy family. "Can we talk about the Elcor in the room?"
Antonio's brow furrowed. "Excuse me?"
"Sorry," she laughed. "An expression back home. I wanted to talk about your position in Nuln now that Huyderman and Sansovino are dead. You're the most powerful crime lord in the city now, aren't you?"
"I am. By a wide margin. I've already got my people grabbing up Huyderman's assets. Thanks to the 'Battle Wizard' firmly in my corner, no one is standing in my way."
"Congratulations," she said raising her glass. Antonio reciprocated the gesture with a smile. She took another sip of her brandy.
Keeping her voice soft, she added, "You ever kidnap anybody?"
Antonio paused with his glass near his lips. He lowered the drink as he held her gaze.
"I have," he answered, keeping his voice low now too. "And I always returned them after the ransom was paid."
"Have you ever taken a child?" Maria asked him next.
"You think Raine would stay married to me if I did?"
"Answer the question Antonio."
"No, I have never threatened a child." His gaze hardened. "I'm a little surprised you think so little of me."
Maria pushed off from the doorway and stepped in closer to Antonio as she whispered, "I just wanted to be up front with you. You saved my life Antonio. And I really like Raine. She's only ever been kind to me. But this partnership only lasts if you understand there are certain things I will never get behind. Just keep that in mind now that you're on top."
It was the same warning she gave the leader of the Tenth Street Reds the day he made her one of his chief enforcers. Maria was happy bending the law, breaking it at times if the rewards were worth it, but she'd never cross certain moral lines no matter how much others threatened or bribed. Being a biotic meant she got that choice.
Antonio didn't say anything in return, but he did take his glass and clink it a second time against Maria's before downing the remainder of the beverage. Then he left her to head back over to the bar. Okay then. Everybody understood everybody else. Good to get that cleared up. Maria sipped the last of her brandy. Now that the excitement was over, she should really take this as a night cap and crawl into bed. Tomorrow she planned on getting the trip to Altdorf fleshed out. Her leg was all healed up, her coin purse was filled one more, and the vampires were hopefully focused on more important things. It was time to get moving.
She tilted her head back and finished what remained of her drink. Wow, this brandy was good. Kemperbad, Antonio had said? She'd need to see if that city was on the way to Altdorf. Could a horse reliably carry a barrel if she strapped one to the side of a saddle? Eh, probably not a good idea. Considering the number of undead wolves she had run into so far, getting drunk every night in the woods probably wasn't a healthy life choice.
And after one glass of the stuff she couldn't be drunk already, so why was she hearing bells? Maria spied Antonio and Paul both leave the bar complaining about the noise as well. She set down her glass and followed them out the front door to the inn. It had to be closer to midnight by now and the streets of Nuln were dark except for the odd streetlamp. Even wearing her turtleneck Maria shivered at the cold wind blowing through the city. And now that they were outside, she could hear the ringing bells more clearly and the sound was growing as several more towers took up the call.
"No wonder they're making suck a racket," Paul exclaimed as he pointed off into the distance. "Look at the glow coming off the foundries."
Maria followed his gaze and looked across the city. Even if Paul hadn't pointed it out she was guaranteed to notice eventually. Across the river on the opposite side of Nuln, she could see the towering smokestacks of the city's numerous foundries lit up by a harsh orange glow that could only be a raging fire. As if to confirm her theory Maria spied the licks of flame reaching up into the night sky.
"They better get a bright wizard down there before the blaze reaches the gunpowder stores." Antonio tsk'd as he shook his head. "Wouldn't want to be the overseer that let that fire start under his watch. The Countess is going to take heads tomorrow over this, mark my words."
Maria's eyes were glued to the glowing horizon even as she asked, "Are fires within the foundries common?"
"Maybe a small one every few years or so," he replied. "Can't be helped with what they do over there. But something this size… nah, this is the first I've seen."
His answer sent her worry over the fire now racing straight to outright dread, and her instincts were screaming in her ears.
"Nuln is under attack."
Paul and Antonio both looked over at her.
"What?" Paul laughed. "It's a fire. Nobody's attacking the city."
"You don't understand!" Maria rounded on the two men. "Over the past few months the great cannons being produced have been sabotaged! Then several weeks ago a skaven infiltrated the university archives and stole the schematics to the foundries! This fire is the next step. Wipe out Nuln's foundries and you disrupt the Empire's ability to mass produce artillery!"
"You can't be sure of that…" Antonio said glancing back to the fire.
She was sure. More and more as she ran the sequence of events through her head again. It just made sense. It's how she would weaken the Empire before future attacks. Hell, just for added spice, she'd plant evidence pointing the finger at one of the neighboring provinces further destabilizing the region as a whole.
Maria ran a hand through her hair. "I need to get over there."
Antonio was looking at her as though she was crazy, but there was a bit of worry mixed in. He turned toward the stables. "I'll get you a horse."
"Yeah, no time for that."
Maria tapped into the winds of magic, shut her eyes, and remembered the same gate house she walked through her first time exploring the city. After a minute of silent concentration, that probably looked silly from where Antonio and Paul were standing, she felt the magic swirl around her body and coil inside her chest.
Then there was a familiar pull.
/ooooooo\
Before Maria even opened her eyes she felt the heat of the fires on her face. And when she did look, she found herself facing an open courtyard with the four nearest buildings fully ablaze.
"Captain, there's another one!"
"Swords men! Kill her quickly!"
She spun around to five really angry looking soldiers and the gatehouse directly behind them. It had been her intent to appear on the other side of the gate, not already inside the foundry grounds. Oops. If she was going to keep doing this vanishing act of hers, she had better work on her aim and that's a sword heading for her face!
Maria ducked the swing. "Slow down cowboys –"
Another sword barely missed her stomach. These soldiers were seriously trying to kill her! Maria flared her biotics then thrust a hand forward and knocked the five men onto their asses.
"Hey! Stand down soldiers, I'm a good guy!"
"And Sigmar was my grandmother!" the lead soldier spat back as he got to his feet, sword still firmly pointed at her gut. "Who are you then sorceress?"
At least he hadn't called her a witch. Maria flared her biotics again and sent the man sprawling back to the ground with another biotic push.
"My name is Maria Shepard and I'm a battle wizard for the Empire," she declared, using her convenient cover identity as she walked forward to stand over him. "Name and rank soldier or I'm turning you into a frog."
Ugh, now she was leaning into the witch stereotype as well… The man's jaw clenched as he looked her up and down, clearly debating whether or not to trust her, or if she could carry through on the frog threat, but eventually relented. He pushed back to his feet and waved the soldiers behind him to lower their own weapons.
"Captain Sauer," he said as he sheathed his sword. "Sorry for the reception but we had to be sure. Vampires come in all shapes and sizes and you just popped in here with a puff of smoke."
"Its fine Captain Sauer but I think we have bigger problems right now." She threw a thumb over her shoulder back to the buildings and the crowd of people trying to contain the fires. "Give me a report. What's the situation?"
The Captain's brow furrowed. "Beggin' your pardon but vampires are the problem. I don't go jumping at shadows unless I have reason to do so. One of those cursed fiends snuck onto the grounds and started those fires. She cut eight of my men up before we chased her off. I sent as many as I could to chase her down while the rest of us try to contain the damage."
Maria opened her mouth, but nothing came out as her brain caught up. Wait a sec… "You said a vampire broke in here and started those fires?"
"Yes I did."
She could only stare at him. "Not the skaven?"
"No," Captain Sauer replied with a frown. "I think I can tell the difference between a vampiress and a rat."
Maria could hardly believe it. She had arrived here expecting a full-on attack. Instead the vampires were trying to burn down Nuln's foundries? It just… why would they do this now of all times?
"What are in those buildings?" she asked the Captain after he sent his guys back to guarding the gatehouse.
"Weapons." Captain Sauer pointed to each of the four buildings in turn. "Rifles, pistols, crossbows, and finally swords, shields, halberds and spears. Everything we keep inside those storehouses has already been sold and awaiting shipment to another of the provinces."
Warehouses. A vampire had set warehouses on fire. Warehouses filled with weapons but warehouses all the same. None of this was adding up. Were the vampires trying to stir up bad relations between Nuln and the rest of the Empire? But if they wanted to do that then they should have set fire to the foundries themselves. The buildings that actually mattered. Every province made their own weapons, but only Nuln had the capability to mass produce the vital mortars, great cannons and other heavy weapons that made the Empire the military powerhouse it was today.
Something was going on here.
"Has the vampire killed anyone else or do you think your soldiers drove her off?"
Captain Sauer shook his head. "I said she cut eight of my boys up but she didn't manage to kill them. And I'm expecting a runner soon. I told the Lieutenant to keep me informed."
"Wait, the vampire didn't even manage to kill anyone?"
"Not for lack of trying," the Captain snarled.
Okay full stop. The vampire hadn't even killed anyone yet? Maria had fought enough to know they didn't mess around if they wanted you dead.
"Which way did your soldiers chase the vampire?" Maria asked quickly.
The Captain pointed across the courtyard to a street and the large foundries. "Down that way."
Maria was already hopping in that direction. "I'm heading after them! The fires are a distraction! There's more going on tonight than we know! And get some more soldiers out here a.s.a.p!"
The Captain was shouting after her, but Maria had turned away and was sprinting toward the night-shrouded foundries. Her sword bumped in time against her thigh as she ran down the gravel road. The fires were a distraction. A vampire wouldn't just injury someone. And the foundries were the primary target. She was still missing the details that put it all together, but she knew it in her gut that she was on to something here.
In seconds she was surrounded on both sides by buildings even bigger than the city's opera house. All of them were dark. It seemed no one worked the night shift. Maria passed by four buildings before she slowed her run and stopped at the fifth. Huge wooden doors that should have been chained shut like the rest were instead pushed open wide enough for people to slip inside. This was the place. The soldiers must have chased the vampire inside. Maria slipped between the doors while pulling out her phalanx pistol. The inside of the foundry was exactly as she would have imagined it. Old-timey machinery poked out of the dark. She had no idea what any of it did of course, but the place smelled of oil, burnt metal, and soot. Clearly a factory.
And crap, way too dark in here. She made it only steps inside before almost tripping over the first body on the stone floor. Maria rolled over the soldier who was face down on the ground. A small pool of blood had gathered around his head, and she found the knife still stuck in his throat. Beside him was another man with his throat cut open. And then a third with a small knife imbedded in his eye.
She rose from the bodies and continued deeper into the foundry, more confused than ever. She had seen these types of wounds before back when she had been a prisoner in Bretonnia. A vampire didn't kill those three men. A skaven had. One of their stupid ninja rats – what had they been called? That Grail Knight she had met, Vincent, had called them gutter runners; members of the skaven death squads. So now she had vampires and evidence of skaven. What was going on here? Were they working together? That's just what she needed…
Sounds of fighting up ahead spurred Maria to move faster, which wasn't easy in the dark, but her omni-tool illuminated enough to see by. She turned a corner to see seven or eight soldiers locked in combat with twice as many black cloaked skaven. The rats' daggers and short swords flashed in bright contrast to their dark appearance within the light of the few lanterns the men were carrying. The skaven were showing off a superb amount of agility as they jumped into the light to strike then skip back over the machinery to disappear again. A solider dropped to the floor with a shout as pair of skaven landed on his back.
Bang! Bang!
Maria took a shot at both the rats. One slumped over the dead man, the other flinched and quickly scattered back into the dark. The noise from her heavy pistol got everyone's attention and Maria used the distraction to fire a cryo-blast from her omni-tool into the nearest rat. She knew the skaven had no idea what he was facing as he raised his arms up to protect his face, but only squeaked in terror when both his arms froze solid and shattered to pieces before his eyes. She put a bullet through his head to put the vermin out of his misery. There was a flurry of more squeaks and suddenly Maria found herself alone with the soldiers. All the skaven retreated into the dark foundry. Considering how adept these pests were proving to be at hit-and-run tactics Maria wasn't going to let herself relax until she was out of the building and back in the open air.
"Hold woman! Name yourself! Now!" One guy and two of his buddies had already turned their swords on Maria. Here we go again. She raised her hands and tried to look less threatening but considering one hand was a glow with her omni-tool and the other was holding a pistol it was probably a wasted effort.
"My name is Shepard and I'm a battle wizard. Captain Sauer sent me to help." Dropping the Captain's name seemed to do the trick as the soldiers relaxed. "What's going on here? I was told all this was because of a vampire but here we are fighting skaven."
"I don't know, damnit!" The apparent leader of the group growled. "That bitch of a fiend set fire to the warehouses and we chased her back here, into the foundry. Steps through the door and suddenly we had rats dropping on us from all sides!" He glared at her. "You say you're a wizard? What college did you study at?"
"The Grey College, uh, shadowmancy." She wasn't expecting a pop quiz and had to pull that from memory.
"No offense, Shepard, but I would have preferred a bright wizard…" the lead soldier grumbled. "It's dark enough as it is in here."
Taking a quick look around Maria made her decision. Seven soldiers left but with her they should be capable of pressing on and getting to the bottom of this mystery.
"We're chasing the skaven off, or at the very least discovering their bolt hole. Are you the Lieutenant that Captain Sauer sent off?"
"Yup, lucky me." He didn't look thrilled. "Lieutenant Fischer."
"Nice to meet you Lieutenant. Now if you were going to sabotage this place, where would you do it?"
"I don't know… the most valuable piece of artillery we forge in here would be the great cannons. I suppose you destroy the smelters you stop production altogether."
Maria nodded. "That's the target then." She turned away from him but stopped after a single step and spun back around. "Which way to the smelters?"
/ooooooo\
Getting through the foundry was easier said than done. It only took Maria and the soldiers a few minutes to run across the building, but they were harassed at every point by more of the stupid ninja rats; leaping out of the darkness to stab and slash, then jump away just as quickly. But the skaven clearly had no idea how to deal with Maria and her biotic powers. After losing another soldier to a sword in the back, she basically put herself on a hair trigger and started throwing warps at every tiny movement. In response the rats started focusing on her more and more, which led to a growing number of furry headless bodies littering the foundry floor.
The smelters themselves were huge, as were the ovens that supplied the sweltering heat needed to melt the various metal ores used in the construction of the great cannons. Even though the foundries were dark and silent during the night, the ovens still burned all hours. The heat in this part of the foundry had her sweating within her turtleneck in minutes.
Maria pulled her sword free from the chest of the skaven that had just leapt at her. Immediately after she raised a quick barrier and blocked a throwing knife aimed for her head. The skaven who had thrown it was hanging upside down on the lattice work to catwalk above their heads. The rat sneered at her but his face turned to terror as she took him in a biotic grip and pulled him straight down to the ground. He hit the stone floor with a bone shattering crunch; twitching once then falling still. Her victory was short lived as another skaven wrapped in black rags jumped forward and started slashing away with a wickedly serrated short sword. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Lieutenant Fischer and his men all engaged in heavy fighting.
This had to be the place. The skaven hadn't let up on the attack since they arrived at the smelters. But the question was, why? She still hadn't found any reason why the skaven were so set on standing their ground.
The skaven she was fighting whipped out a curved sickle-looking tool, locked Maria's sword between the serrated teeth of his own, then used the sickle to twist it from her hands where it slid somewhere along the floor and disappeared into the dark.
The rat's snout turned up in a grin as it brandished both his weapons and chittered at her menacingly.
"Oh, like you're the first person to beat me in a sword fight!" Maria snapped.
The skaven attacked but bounced off a hastily constructed barrier. Certainly wiped that cocky grin right off his stupid face. And then she sent him blasting backward through the darkness with an overpowered warp. Wherever he landed, he wasn't going to be getting back up.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A trio of gunshots went off nearly simultaneously causing Maria to flinch as one of the bullets whizzed by her head close enough to blow her hair. One hit its mark as a soldier ahead of her was knocked to the ground, where he remained unmoving. Holy shit, there were more than gutter runners in here! The shots had come from behind her so Maria spun around and could just barely make out three skaven up on another one of the catwalks. The one in the middle was wearing an armored suit, just like the skaven who had shot her back in Bretonnia when she first fell to this world, and it was only thanks to something green glowing off the suit she was even able to see any of them at all.
She grabbed her own pistol, thumbed on the targeting laser, and returned fire. The two unarmored rats fell from the catwalk after being shot but a disturbingly loud ping was all she got for hitting the armored skaven, who remained standing and very much still alive. Maria fired twice more but only received another two pings as the rat raised his arm to protect his face.
Then the green glow from the armored skaven's back got brighter. The rat let loose a bunch of loud and high-pitched squeaks as he pointed his other arm down at Maria. That now bright green glow seemed to travel around the rat's back, down his arm and –
"Look out!"
Off to her side someone ran into Maria and tackled her to the ground, just before a bright glowing green liquid streamed out of the skaven's armor and splashed to the floor right where she had been standing.
Flat on her back with someone still on top of her Maria pushed up on her elbows and caught a glimpse of the place she had been standing only a second ago. A pool of that green boiling liquid covered the stone floor… and it was dissolving the stone away with a disturbing amount of speed as it ate its way through the ground.
The skaven had acid spitting armor components. Right, well then, note to self, never give an armored up skaven a chance to spit their foul green goo at her. A rule right up there with don't let yourself get stepped on by a giant and don't let yourself get barbequed by fire-breathing dragons.
Tearing her gaze away from the acid pit Maria focused on her rescuer. And if she thought this night couldn't surprise her anymore, she was dead wrong. Instead of the Lieutenant or one of his soldiers Maria found herself looking into the eyes of a young woman, and honestly, couldn't help but stare.
She had blue eyes coupled with high cheekbones and wide lips, and immediately Maria noticed her pale straw-colored, very nearly white, head of hair that was just shorter than Maria's own, and had more resemblance with a haystack than anything else. Strange as it was but the next thought to pop into Maria's head was that she should loan the woman a hairbrush. It was also at that point Maria noticed the woman had a scar on the left side of her face. Less than an inch from her eye was a thin black line running temple to cheek. It contrasted greatly against the woman's otherwise soft and unblemished pale skin.
Maria tore her eyes of the woman's face and looked back up to the catwalk. The armored skaven was nowhere in sight. Must have run off after missing her with his acid gun. The young woman had also looked over her shoulder back to where the skaven had been but after seeing the threat had retreated their eyes met again.
"Nice tackle," Maria said with a shaky laugh.
"Just glad I got to you in time." Maria was surprised to note traces of an accent she had yet to hear within the borders of the Empire. Eastern Europe? Maybe Russian, she'd figure it out later. In the woman's right hand she was still holding a sword, so her left hand rested lightly on Maria's stomach as she quickly looked Maria up and down. "You aren't injured, are you?"
The young woman's concern over tackling Maria would have been funny if it wasn't for the fact when she had spoken Maria happened to be focusing on her mouth… and caught a glimpse of two long pointed teeth behind her lips.
"Oh fuck." Maria's breath caught in her throat and the other woman's eyes snapped instantly back to meet hers. The vampire's eyes went wide when she realized her mistake and the fangs quickly shrunk back to normal looking teeth.
"Shepard!" Lieutenant Fischer raised his sword with a shout. "Get off her you blood sucking beast!"
The vampire leapt back to her feet and in a surprising show of strength had hauled Maria up with her, putting Maria between herself and the soldiers. Next thing she knew Maria felt the young woman's – scratch that – vampire's hand grip the back of her neck, as well as a very long thin sword rest against her cheek.
"Stop!" The vampire shouted. "Not a step closer!"
Lieutenant Fischer along with his four surviving men were forced to quit their charge. They spread out, swords raised, but just out of reach of either of them.
"I'll kill you fiend," Lieutenant Fischer growled as he took a step closer. The pressure on Maria's neck increased as the vampire pulled her a step back. "Let the wizard go and I promise to make it quick."
"Maria, tell them not to attack," the vampire ordered.
Maria froze when the vampire spoke her name. What the hell? "How do you –"
"Not a word fiend!" Lieutenant Fisher shouted over Maria. "I won't have you casting your foul magic over Shepard!"
"Wait, Fischer, I'm –"
"I'm not casting any spell!" the vampire yelled back in defense.
"She wasn't –"
The Lieutenant took another step. "Last chance! Let her go!" He raised his sword and the vampire's grip tightened.
"EVERYBODY CHILL!" Maria screamed at the top of her lungs.
That finally seemed to do the trick as the soldiers and vampire stood stunned at the sudden outburst. "Alright then…" Maria took a deep breath as she tried to regain control of the situation. "Fischer, unless the skaven jump out at us you are not to move a muscle. Am I understood Lieutenant?"
In the dim lantern light she could see his jaw clench, but he eventually gave her a single curt nod. Great. Awesome. Progress has been made.
"Okay. Now," she tried to turn as much as she could in the vampire's tight grip, "I have a question for you. How do you know my first name?" She hadn't even told the Lieutenant her first name when they had met inside the foundry.
The pressure on the back of her neck lessened a fraction. "I know you. Not personally," she added quickly, "but I – I recognized you after seeing your strange pistol and magics. Like most vampires I've heard the stories. You're the woman who killed Walach Harkon. And you're the only human immune to our curse…"
Wasn't is great being famous for something? "Alright, if you know all that, then why did you just save me from the skaven's green acid?"
The vampire's thin blade left her cheek. "I don't care who you are. I just need your help to save Nuln before it's too late. I've been spying on the skaven for the past couple of days. I know what their plan is. And if we don't put aside our differences and work together, than we're all going to die tonight."
Well this got ominous fast. "How are we all going to die?"
"The skaven brought a device up from the sewers. I think it's an explosive. I witnessed them set it inside the foundry and I'm guessing we have minutes before it goes off and takes out the surrounding buildings."
Shit. Shit, shit, shit. Looks like she had been right after all. The skaven were planning to attack Nuln. With a bomb of all things. Just great.
Maria nodded in the vampire's grip. "Alright. We've heard you out. But if you want us to take the word of a vampire than you need to prove yourself before we go any further."
She just barely heard the vampire sigh. "Story of my life," she muttered so softly Maria almost missed it. Then she felt the grip on her neck vanish as the vampire let her go and took a few quick steps back to put a bit of distance between them.
Maria gave Lieutenant Fischer a look to reassure him she was okay, then she turned to face the vampire. Still the same young face she had seen but now that she knew the girl was a vampire there was no telling how old she truly was. She was dressed in clothes Maria would have picked herself given the chance. A white linen shirt with a brown vest, and black pants with thigh high black leather boots. What she felt on her cheek was true. The vampire's sword was incredibly thin, and probably measured out to three and a half, maybe four feet. Her knowledge of swords was slowly growing, and Maria figured it for a rapier. A sword preferred by duelists; made for quick thrusts to stab at vital organs, rather than hack and slash like the more common broad swords found throughout the Empire.
She watched the vampire pull a second sword from her belt and toss it at Maria's feet. She snatched it up and was surprised to see it was her side sword she had lost only minutes ago to that last cocky skaven she had fought.
"Is that enough?" the vampire asked crisply. She certainly looked on edge. "With or without you I'm saving this city, but it would go a lot smoother if we joined forces."
Maria met the vampire's eyes and was surprised by the amount of emotion she saw there. This woman was desperate. She'd fight on whether they chose to help her or not. Admirable. And it just happened to be enough to convince Maria to give her a chance. Not like she had many options of course. Not with a bomb ticking somewhere nearby.
"Lieutenant Fischer, as of this moment we are working with this vampire to stop the skaven. She is to be considered an ally and we will all treat her as such."
"Are you touched in the head?!" the Lieutenant practically shouted back. "You can't possibly expect us to trust our lives to a blood sucker!"
Maria faced the Lieutenant with her hand on her hip. "I can and I do. Even Captain Sauer admitted she hasn't killed anyone yet. She's only injured those who got in her way. Now either you obey my orders and help us stop the skaven from blowing up the city-state you've sworn to protect, or you can find your own way out of this rat-infested foundry. As of this moment I assume full responsibility for whatever happens here tonight. If she stabs us in the back, then it's on me."
"Fat load of good that will do the stabbed now won't it?" he snarled back. "Fine. For the good of Nuln, fiend, we shall work together." As soon as he lowered his sword his fellow soldiers followed suit. Most of them were still looking a little shell-shocked over the entire situation.
Maria faced the vampire again. "You know where the skaven device is?"
She nodded. "Yes. They placed it near the back of the foundry."
"Alright then. One more thing before we move out. I can't just go calling you vampire when we're trusting each other with our lives. What's your name?"
She looked hesitant at first but relented. "Ulrika. You can call me Ulrika."
Maria smiled. "Nice to meet you Ulrika. Lead the way."
/ooooooo\
"I don't understand. I can see the device, but the skaven are gone. I don't see anyone standing guard." Ulrika stepped back from where she had been peeking around the corner of a wall they were all hiding behind and looked back at the group. And she was using the term 'hiding' loosely considering their shrinking group was forced to carry lanterns just to see. Though they had at least smothered the glow as much as possible.
Maria moved forward and stole a quick glance of her own. Unfortunately, she couldn't even see the thing Ulrika claimed was the skaven bomb.
"Maybe they're hiding," Lieutenant Fischer grunted. "By now we've killed enough of them."
"I know it's dark in here for you, but to my eyes it's still bright as day," Ulrika replied crisply. "The skaven are gone."
"Or maybe something else is going on…" Maria added softly as she examined the dark foundry a little more closely. For whatever reason her gaze kept climbing up to the ceiling. It felt wrong and made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. In the back of her mind the word 'ambush' pulsed like a neon-bright sign. "But it doesn't matter," she said pulling back, "we need to stop the skaven." Maria faced the men. "Let's go. Ulrika, take point. Fischer, follow up behind and watch our backs."
Everyone nodded in the affirmative then Ulrika rounded the corner with her thin blade raised and hurried into the dark, Maria right behind her, and the soldiers following in step. They only walked a short way before Maria finally saw the thing Ulrika claimed was brought up by the rats.
It was a sphere around the height and thickness of a wooden barrel. Maria replaced her sword at her hip then kneeled in front of the device and examined it closer as Ulrika and the soldiers fanned out around her. A patchwork of poorly welded together steel and copper plates made up the thing's shell, and it sat about four inches off the stone floor on six evenly spaced sharp metal spikes. Another six spikes ringed the top portion. Randomly sticking out of the metal plates were wires and tubes that twisted around together before diving back into another hole somewhere else on the shell. Some of them were giving off a faint green glow.
"Okay… okay…." Maria took a steady breath as she lightly placed her hands on the steel and copper plates. She was surprised to feel a soft warmth coming from the device. Sliding her hands over the uneven surfaces, Maria felt it out, then froze when she noticed the weakest drumming on her fingertips. Two beats, then nothing. Then again, two beats, followed by nothing.
"What's wrong?"
Maria had been so focused on the device she hadn't even noticed Ulrika had dropped to a knee beside her.
"It's actually ticking," she replied grimly.
"Like a clock?" Ulrika looked momentarily taken aback, then placed her own hand lightly on the metal shell next to Maria's. "It is. That can't be good."
"No, generally that's a bad thing." She took her hands off the metal then booted up her omni-tool and began scanning the device. N7s got basic training in the field, but bomb disposal was nowhere near her area of expertise. Luckily high-end military grade omni-tools came with programs designed to aid soldiers in diffusing anything from improvised explosive devices to nuclear warheads.
"What type of an enchantment creates this illusion on your arm?" Ulrika asked while eyeing the omni-tool's orange glow as it spread out over the bomb.
Maria offered her a one-shouldered shrug. "I can't really explain it in one go. Just trust me when I say this is a very complicated tool with very complicated bits inside… that…" She trailed off as the tool finished its scan of the bomb and displayed the results on her wrist.
…00:08:04…00:08:03…00:08:02…00:08:01…
Oh god.
Maria's world shrunk to the readout. Suddenly she couldn't breathe and fell back to sit on her heels as the numbers continued to count down before her eyes. Her throat constricted as her heart hammered away in her chest. Her arm visibly shook.
It was the Collector station all over again. She had just over seven minutes before this alien device went off and killed her, Ulrika, Lieutenant Fischer and his soldiers, not to mention how many people throughout the city that would be caught up in the blast. How was she supposed to diffuse something built by mutated rodents?! Did they even think the same way?! Who was to say this thing would even blow at zero. Maybe the rats failed to rig it properly and it would blow up at five! Or maybe seven! Hell, touching it again might be enough to set it off, she didn't know!
…00:07:47… she should run… 00:07:46… she had to get out of here… 00:07:45… she couldn't be expected to do this!
"Maria, are you alright? What's wrong?"
A hand clamped her shoulder, pulling her world back into focus. Maria swallowed hard and forced herself to take a breath. The quickest way to push through a panic attack was to acknowledge you were having one, and damnit, this had come out of nowhere. She had no idea dying for the second time had affected her so deeply.
Except she hadn't died. She had landed here. She had fallen through a massive fireball, survived the destruction of a space station orbiting a black hole, and woke up in a grassy field on an unchartered habitable world… because voices in her head.
…00:07:28…00:07:27…
Fuck! She didn't have time for this!
Maria rubbed her hands roughly over her face then through her hair, and lightly brushed Ulrika's hand off her shoulder.
"I'm fine," she stated, more to herself than to the vampire. "It's nothing – just caught me off guard." Maria rose off her heels and focused back on the bomb and her omni-tool. While the tool was able to work out the bomb's remaining time before detonation, it was having difficulty working out the mess of wires, tubes, do-dads, and what-the-hells that made up the core. "This thing's insides are a mess." She scooted on her knees around the sphere as the omni-tool continued its scan. "I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise when rats of all things built it."
Her tool had already identified the explosive payload – which was the exact center mass of the sphere – and it had identified the timer counting down, but between it and the payload, the tool was having a hard time figuring out how the two were connected through the mess of metal and wires. And Maria wasn't willing to just yank off the timer for fear of setting the bomb off early.
Wait a minute. One of the copper plates near the base of the bomb wasn't welded completely shut. She laid down on her side and examined it closer. Sloppy work. The metal was scorched, and the welding was rough; literally just enough to hold the plate in place. Quick and fast. Maria reached to the small of her back and pulled out her silver knife. She worked the tip of the blade into the edges of the plate, and after some effort, snapped the five-inch by five-inch square of copper entirely off.
"Did you find something?" Ulrika was standing over her.
"Give me a second," Maria replied, fully aware of the irony that she didn't have many seconds left. She put the silver knife away and then shoved her hand into the hole she had just made. There were a ton of tiny little wires everywhere that she either pulled out as much as she could or simply shoved aside so there was room to see. And then she saw it. Stuck between two different metal tubes was a small vial as thick as her thumb and maybe four inches long. Suspended in the center of the glass vial was a familiar looking green rock, and the rock was being held in place by green lightning snapping faintly in the dark of the bomb's interior.
The rats had developed lightning in a bottle. Just perfect. But at least her omni-tool was able to identify this little vial as the power source for the bomb. That seemed to be the closest thing she was going to get to finding an actual detonator.
Without thinking too long on the consequences if she was wrong, Maria wrapped her hand around the glass vial, and with a quick tug, yanked it out from between the metal tubes. The faint green glow the sphere had been giving off immediately faded away. She glanced at her omni-tool for conformation.
…00:07:01… but that was where it stayed. The countdown had stopped.
Maria smiled wide. "I did it!"
A rapid crescendo of glass shattering around their feet was the only response she got, and suddenly Maria found herself drowning in a wave of black smoke as it rose off the stone floor and engulfed all of them in darkness. She leapt back to her feet, unable to see even her own hands in front of her face. The smoke stung her eyes and they began to water in response, and her skin itched with her lungs burning after a single breath. She quickly reached for the collar of her turtleneck and unrolled the folded fabric over her mouth and nose, immediately finding some relief with her next breath.
"It's the skaven!" Ulrika barked somewhere to Maria's left, right before swords began striking one another. Lieutenant Fischer and his men weren't as fortunate as Maria or the vampire. She could her them coughing and hacking as they tried to shout for one another in the blackness.
Then one of the soldier's scream was abruptly cut off.
Maria whirled in a circle; her body enveloped in the blue glow of a barrier. She could blast the smoke away with a concentrated outward burst of biotic power. But no. She'd just end up hitting everybody around her, maybe even injure or even kill one of the soldiers.
Another scream turned into a horrible gurgling somewhere behind her. In her mind she could see the man falling to the ground clutching his slit throat.
This was exactly what she had done to the beastmen back when she fought them inside their stone circle. She had cast a smokescreen with her magic that only allowed the Reiksguard to see. It brought a swift end to the fight as the Emperor's men butchered the beasts. So Maria closed her eyes and opened herself to the winds of magic. If the skaven thought this smokescreen was their ace-in-the-hole she was ready to prove them dead wrong. This world's magic was still new to her, but she was willing to bet being a sorceress who wielded the wind of Ulgo meant any shadow could be manipulated.
The winds still weren't strong this night, but Maria quickly felt out every trace surrounding the foundries and yanked it all into herself. The violent action made her head spin but at least it was enough to work with. Outstretching her right arm, Maria sent tendrils of her power out into the black… then smiled as it twisted and gripped the smoke as though it had physical substance. With another mental command Maria pulled the tendrils of magic back into her arm, and as they did, the smoke came with them.
She opened her eyes. And nearly laughed at the sight of the smoke being sucked directly into her skin. She was vacuuming the air! Magic was awesome. There was a flurry of rapid squeaks as the skaven witnessed their advantage mysteriously vanish before their eyes. The last of the blackness was ripped away into her arm, which allowed the two lanterns their group still had, as well as the blue glow from her biotics, to finally illuminate their whisker-snouted, hairless-tailed, very surprised attackers.
Four skaven surrounded Lieutenant Fischer and his surviving two soldiers, while another four were spread out around Ulrika. Maria was pleasantly surprised to see the vampire had still managed to kill two of the rats even though she had been blinded. The smoke clearly hadn't managed to dull her enhanced senses.
"Much better," Ulrika practically purred with delight as she whipped her thin blade through the air, sending a splash of the skaven's black blood that had been coating it to the stone floor.
As she pulled down the collar of her turtleneck Maria was just happy her crazy idea had worked. Clearly the vampire needed no more assistance, so Maria turned to the Lieutenant and his men. And in one smooth motion shot all four of the cloaked rats in the chest with her phalanx pistol. Well, except for the fourth one. After seeing his three buddies die so easily, the fourth rat turned to flee. Technically she had shot him in the back but was happy to do so.
"My thanks Shepard," Lieutenant Fischer nodded to her. He wore a pained expression as he looked over the bodies of the two men he had lost, then marched over to join Maria. "Never known a battle wizard of the Empire to use a gun though."
"I'm special", Maria replied with a shrug. At the moment she was just trying to keep her knees locked under her and didn't want to show it. That simple act of removing the smokescreen had taken more out of her than she liked to admit. The space around the foundries was now devoid of magic, and she couldn't feel the winds at all. Hopefully that was the last time she'd need to call on the power tonight.
A furious chittering and squeaking pulled everybody's attention back to where Ulrika was standing alone with lifeless skaven bodies littering the floor around her. Correction. Most of them were dead while one remained alive. A struggling rat that was pinned to the floor by Ulrika's sword thrust through its shoulder.
Still a little lightheaded Maria walked over to the vampire.
"Any reason you've chosen not to kill this chaos-spawn, blood sucker?" Fischer asked as he followed behind Maria.
Ulrika's eyes never left the struggling rat. "A very good reason Lieutenant. I've fought the skaven on several occasions, and I know nothing is ever simple when they are involved. They have more surprises planned this night."
The skaven suddenly pulled a throwing star from somewhere beneath his black cloak but before he could make use of it, Ulrika kicked the weapon out of his hand with enough force to snap the skaven's wrist.
The rat clutched his ruined paw and snarled, showing off rows of sharp yellow teeth.
"I not squeak-tell you our plans dead-thing!"
Maria froze. "Did that thing just talk?" She stared at Ulrika. "The skaven can talk?!"
The rat sneered at her. "Stupid breeder-thing knows nothing of Clan Eshin's mighty-greatness! We kill-slave you all and feed you-you as meat to our litters!"
Ulrika twisted her sword making the skaven squeal in pain. "Tell me what your plans were for Nuln. Tell me everything and I promise to make your death painless."
"Never!"
Ulrika looked down on the rat with a curious expression. "You live up to your clan's reputation…" Then she dropped to a knee next to its impaled body and grabbed the skaven by the neck and its working arm, "…but the night wanes and I don't have time to waste."
Maria took an unconscious step back, while Fischer swore behind her, as Ulrika's fangs snapped down and she sunk them into the skaven's furry neck. The rat squealed in terror and struggled fiercely for the first instant, then fell limp with a moan the next. Black blood oozed out between Ulrika's lips as she drank its blood.
The vampiress drank deeply, swallowing mouthfuls, then pulled her head back from the rat. The skaven's black blood coated her lips and ran down her chin. Ulrika's eyes were both fierce and alluring as she stared down into the skaven's unfocused red ones. Maria swallowed at the sight. The vampire's cold beauty was scarcely diminished by the disgusting act, and that was a level of creepy beyond anything else.
"Tell me what I want to know," Ulrika asked again as she ran a hand through the rat's fur.
The skaven nodded, his snout bouncing up and down. "Yes-yes."
"Why attack Nuln?"
"To sabotage-destroy the man-thing's foundries."
"Did we stop you?" Ulrika asked next.
The skaven grinned as he leaned upward to try and rub his whiskered nose against Ulrika's face.
"No…"
"What do you mean?"
The skaven released a breathless laugh. "We were paid-promised much-much to set three of these devices."
Maria's stomach lurched. Oh no…
Ulrika's grip on the rat's neck tightened to the point it flinched. "Where are the other two?"
"Please sweet dead-thing," the skaven whined.
"Tell me where and I promise more."
"Two more-more dwellings down," the skaven replied eagerly, "and another across the man-thing's scurry-path."
Ulrika gripped the skaven's head with both her hands and with a simple movement broke its neck. Then she stood and walked a few steps away, where she leaned over and vomited up the black blood she had drunk from the rodent. She heaved twice more, spit out a glob, then wiped her mouth with her shirt sleeve.
"I'm sorry if that was disturbing for you," she gasped, turning back to the group. She gripped the hilt of her sword and pulled it free from the body. "But their blood is among the vilest I've ever had the misfortune of tasting."
Hell yeah, it was disturbing.
"Doesn't matter," Maria said as she quickly found her voice. "It worked. We now know there are two more bombs we need to disarm." She faced Lieutenant Fischer and his two men; whose faces were all white from witnessing a vampire drink from a skaven. "We need to get to the others fast. If they were all set on the same timer then we have around five minutes before Nuln goes boom.
"Follow me," she added as she activated her omni-tool and used the light to see. "Let's get out of here."
Maria led the group back to the front doors of the foundry. They ran the entire way, with Maria hoping they didn't run into another group of skaven intent on slowing them down. Surprisingly they didn't. The foundry remained empty, with the group only passing the bodies of the dead from their previous struggles. When they finally passed through the front entrance Maria nearly ran into another group of soldiers who were set on barging their way inside. Suddenly there were a large number of swords and pistols pointed at her head.
That seemed to be happening a lot tonight.
"Don't move!" their leader shouted. "Name yourself!"
Even before she could answer the soldiers lowered their weapons when they spied Lieutenant Fischer catch up behind her.
"Lieutenant! Glad to see you alive sir!" The man looked back at Maria. "I take it you're the battle wizard Captain Sauer told me about. Apologies ma'am. We were told a female vampire was loose on the grounds." He was instantly back on edge when Ulrika came into view. "Who is this with you, sir?"
Oh they really did not have time for this.
"She's my… apprentice!" Maria quickly told the group. She held Lieutenant Fischer's eyes, pleading with him to play along as she explained. "I called for her assistance once I discovered the threat we're facing."
The man opened his mouth, but Maria continued over him. "We don't have time for this. The skaven have broken into the foundries and placed explosive devices inside three of them. We just diffused the first, suffering heavily casualties in the attempt. I need you and your men to join Lieutenant Fischer to disarm the second, while my apprentice and I disarm the third. Do you understand?"
The man blinked rapidly. "The skaven – that can't be true, the rats are a –"
Maria flared her biotics with enough force to make every take a step back. "I wasn't asking for your opinion soldier; I was giving you your orders. We have minutes before everything goes to hell. Now follow Lieutenant Fischer and keep him alive at all costs."
The new group snapped to attention after her biotic display. No one wanted to mess with an agitated battle wizard.
"Yes sir, understood sir!"
That was one problem dealt with. Maria spun back to the Lieutenant and held up the lightning filled glass vial she had yanked from the skaven bomb.
"This is what you need to pull out of the device," she explained carefully but quickly. "I found a loose metal plate around the base of the sphere. Pop it off, push the junk out of the way, and you should see this glowing inside. Wretch it out, and the bomb is a dud. Got it?"
Lieutenant Fischer held her gaze until she was done. He shot an annoyed, practically hate filled glance over to Ulrika, but looked back to Maria and gave her a nod.
"We'll get it done."
Clearly he still despised the vampire in their presence but he understood the danger they were all in and trusted Maria enough to go along with her plan.
She gripped his arm and gave it a quick squeeze. "Thank you, Fischer." She released him and looked over the grounds, then pointed to the foundry across the gravel street.
"You take that one. Ulrika and I will handle the other two buildings down."
Fischer nodded again. "Men, with me! We take the fight to the rats and drive them from our city!"
Maria watched him lead the soldiers off. He now had eighteen more men with him. Hopefully that proved to be enough… or they were all in trouble.
"Do you think they'll manage it?" Ulrika asked.
Maria honestly didn't know. "We don't have time to worry about them." She started running down the road, past the next foundry and toward the one after. The vampire easily kept pace beside her. "Maybe we'll get lucky and the skaven have all run away before their bombs go off."
"The skaven are self-serving cowards, but I've never been that fortunate," Ulrika replied.
Maria grimaced. Neither had she.